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THE 


WOMAN   OF   THE  WORLD 


THE 


WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


A    NOVEL. 


BY 


THE  AUTHORESS  OF  THE 

DIARY    OF   A    DESENNUYEE. 

"  O  matter  and  impertinency  mix'd  !" 

Shakspeare. 

THREE    VOLUMES. 
VOL   L 


LONDON: 
HENRY    COLBURN,    PUBLISHER, 

GREAT  MARLBOROUGH   STREET. 

1838. 


WHltlNO,    IiEAIFORl     HOUSF,    STRAND. 


%<l  '^ 


QuU 


PREFACE. 


After  two  years  of  strict  seclusion  at  Harts- 
ton  Abbey,  the  Dtsennuyee  emerges  once  more 
into  the  sunshine  of  the  gay  world !  The 
torpid  chrysalis  into  which_,  in  her  rural  retreat, 
the  gay  butterfly  was  transformed,  has  by  an 
inversion  of  the  laws  of  nature,  become  a 
butterfly  again ;  fluttering  anew  among  the 
gaudy  parterres  of  that  singularly  ugly  portion 
of  the  creation  which  calls  itself  the  beau  monde. 
To  deposit  among  their  roses  and  lilies  the 
off'spring  of  her  leisure,  is  the  harmless  purpose 
of  her  ephemeral  existence.  From  the  violence 
of  the  summer  shower,  she  creeps  for  shelter 

■    ■'     535182 


VI  PREFACE. 

under  a  laurel-leaf ;  while  against  human  assail- 
ants, her  fragile  nature  is  her  defence. 

Who  breaks  a  butterfly  upon  a  wheel  ? — fFho 
attacks  with  needless  severity  a  frivolous  insect, 

— a 

Gay  being  born  to  flutter  through  the  air — 
To-day  to  sparkle,  and  to-morrow  die  ? 

Dropping,  however,  my  wings  and  my  meta- 
phor, be  it  the  first  duty  of  the  Desennuyee  to 
acknowledge  with  gratitude,  the  kindness  with 
which  the  diary  of  her  adventures  and  senti- 
ments were  received  by  the  world.  Favour 
renders  many  bold,  but  some  timid ;  and  it  is 
not  without  hesitation  I  follow  up  the  history 
of  my  own  life  with  an  "  own  true  tale,"  re- 
garding two  interesting  families,  my  neighbours 
at  Hartston  Abbey ;  which,  disguising  their 
names  and  titles,  they  have  empowered  me  to 
offer  as  a  lesson  to  the  giddy  circles  of  the 
metropohs. 

Such  is  the  origin  of  my  sketch  of  '^  A 
Woman  of  the  World. '^  The  picture  is  true  to 
nature, — (i.  e.  to  fashionable  nature;)  but,  as 
the  world   does   not  always,  like   Satan,  take 


PREFACE.  Vll 

care  of  its  own,  the  portrait  may  be  disowned 
and  reviled  by  the  original  or  originator. 

The  coteries  of  the  day  differ  in  fact  more 
extensively  than  they  are  aware  of  from  the 
coteries  of  yesterday,  in  which  figured  the  flighty 
Mrs.  Delaval.     The  splendid  year  1838,  with 
its    crowns   and   sceptres,    stars  and    garters, 
heralds  and  helter-skelter  hopes  and  promises, 
is  an  era  of  deeper  interest  than  its  sallow,  pen- 
sive, desponding  elder  sister  ;  and  as  the  human 
mind  is  roused  to  a  more  .active  exercise  of  its 
powers  by  the  conflict  of  stirring  events,  the 
London  of  this  passing  month  is  not  to  be  tri- 
lled  with ! — James*  may  put  a  pistol  to   its 
breast  and  bid  it  '^  stand  and  deliver,''  or  Cooper 
embark  its  attention  in  a  seventy-four,  but  my 
implement  of  destruction  is  a  paltry  sky  rocket, 
and  the  gay  pinnace  of  the  Desennuyee,  with 
youth  at  the  prow,  and  pleasure  at  the  helm, 
may  perhaps  be  wrecked  in  the  offing. 

My  last  lucubrations  were  addressed  to  a  mild, 
somnolent,  easy- chair  sort  of  pubhc,  taking  breath 
and  a  nap  after  the  Reform  Bill.     Mais  7iou$ 
*   Author  of  '♦  The  Robber/' 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

avo?i5  change  tout  cela.  England  is  wide  awake. 
What  Talleyrand  called  '*  le  cofiunencement  de  /a 
jin^^  and  even  Talleyrand  himself,  is  merged  in 
the  dust  of  centuries;  and  we  have  attained 
*^  h  commencement  (Van  commencement^^  an 
epoch  of  brightness,  joy,  and  consummation. 
Autumn  and  Winter  have  departed,  and  Spring 
and  Summer  lie  before  us.  We  are  besrinninfj 
to  be  merry  as  well  as  wise, — the  best  result 
perhaps  of  wisdom  : — 

The  hour  now  promises  unto  this  land  a 
thousand  thousand  blessings  which  time  vshall 
l)ring  to  ripeness  ! 

Still,  amid  its  mirth  and  rejoicing,  may  the 
public  find  a  picktooth  hour  for  pages  light  and 
fearless  as  its  present  mood ;  and  a  rival  to  the 
brilliancy  of  the  bench  of  peeresses,  in  the 
attractions  of  ^^A  Woman  of  the  World." 

H.  HARTSTON. 

Arlington  Street, 
June  15,  1838. 


THE 

WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Du  nom  de  vertueux  serez  vous  honore 
Doux  et  discret  Cyrus,  en  vous-meme  concentre  ; 
Honnete  homme  indolent,  qui,  dans  un  doux  loisir, 
Loin  du  bien  et  du  mal,  vivez  pour  votre  plaisir? — 

Voltaire. 

There  is  no  state  of  obscurity  more  obscure^ 
and  perhaps  none  of  mortal  enjoyment  more 
enjoyable  than  the  condition  of  a  country 
baronet  of  respectable  connexions  and  compe- 
tent means. 

VOL.  I.  B 


2  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Sir  William  Helmsley,  of  Helmsley  Abbey, 
with  an  income  such  as  his  butler  might 
be  excused  for  representing  to  his  brother 
butlers  as  "  five  thousan'  a  year/^  and  a  hand- 
some house  situated  in  one  of  the  woodland 
districts  of  Northamptonshire,  though  neA^er 
heard  of  out  of  his  own  county,  and  rarely  out 
of  his  own  parish,  had  every  motive  that  a  rea- 
sonable mind  can  suggest  for  the  fervency  of 
his  gratitude  to  Providence.  A  good  constitu- 
tion— good  person — good  temper — good  for- 
tune— good  family — good  wife — good  reputation 
— good  standing  in  the  world :  such  were  the 
qualities  and  qualifications  which  his  worst 
enemy  could  not  deny  to  Sir  William.  Yet, 
strange  to  relate,  his  maternal  uncle.  Lord 
Shropshire  (lord-lieutenant  of  a  neighbouring 
county  and  a  whister  of  thirty  years'  renown 
at  White's),  never  spoke  of  him  but  as  a  lost 
man  1 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  3 

"  My  nephew  V — he  used  to  say,  in  reply  to 
inquiries  after  the  son  of  old  Sir  Robert.  "  Oh ! 
poor  Helmsley  is  completely  done  for ! — Helms- 
ley  has  placed  an  extinguisher  upon  himself. — 
Helmsley  will  never  be  heard  of  again ; — lives 
entirely  at  his  country  place — kills  his  own 
mutton — receives  his  own  rents — dotes  upon 
his  own  wife — and  educates  his  own  children. 
I  offered  to  bring  him  into  parliament  at  the 
last  dissolution ;  but  he  thanked  me,  and  told 
me  by  way  of  answer  that  Lady  Helmsley  was 
not  fond  of  London.'^ 

And  such  was  the  exact  position  of  the  coun- 
try baronet.  He  was  so  fortunate  as  to  have 
found  a  companion  who  agreed  with  him  in 
preferring  a  hfe  of  usefulness  to  a  life  of  show ; 
who  never  tormented  him  with  sighing  after 
a  house  in  May  Fair,  or  falhng  into  a  fit  of  the 
suUens  when  she  saw  their  neighbours  depart 
to  London   for  the  season.     Lady  Helmsley, 

B   2 


4  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

the  daughter  of  a  Northamptonshire  squire  of 
his  own  level  in  fortune  and  family,  shared  in 
all  his  prejudices  and  predilections ;  there  was 
not  even  the  trifling  jealousy  of  county  rivalship 
to  create  dissension  between  them.  They 
agreed  in  thinking  Europe  the  favoured  quar- 
ter of  the  globe — England  the  favoured  country 
of  Europe  ;  Northamptonshire  the  best  county 
in  England,  and  Helmsley  Abbey  the  most 
eligible  spot  in  Northamptonshire.  It  has  al- 
ready been  admitted,  that  Sir  William  thought 
Lady  Helmsley  the  first  of  women;  and  her 
ladyship  fully  returned  the  compliment  in 
favour  of  the  fortunate  Sir  William. 

A  man  must  have  been  indeed  fastidious, 
not  to  prove  an  adoring  husband  to  the  lovely 
and  gifted  Marcella.  Not  that  Lady  Helmsley 
was  either  a  professed  beauty  or  a  professed 
wit;  but  every  turn  of  her  countenance  was 
attractive,  every  word  of  her  lips  persuasive. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  5 

Endowed  with  the  only  art  that  can  be  called 
akin  to  nature,  the  art  of  pleasing,  her  influence 
over  her  husband  was  unbounded. 

Such  were  the  causes  which  induced  Lord 
Shropshire  to  decide  that  ^^  poor  Helmsley  had 
placed  an  extinguisher  on  himself/''  When  the 
noble  uncle,  visiting  at  Helmsley  Abbey,  sug- 
gested the  removal  of  a  village  which  was 
planted  out  at  a  considerable  expense  of  pros- 
pect to  the  park.  Sir  William  replied  that 
Marcella  liked  it  to  be  there ;  and  when  he 
proposed  making  acquaintance  for  them  with 
the  family  of  Lord  Colebrooke,  who  was  just 
returned  from  a  residence  on  the  continent, 
and  settled  at  Woodlands,  a  seat  about  thirty 
miles  distant,  Marcella  answered  that  she  con- 
sidered the  distance  too  great  for  country 
visiting.  It  was  in  vain  Lord  Shropshire  ob- 
served, in  a  somewhat  reproving  tone,  that 
the  Colebrookes  ranked  among  the  first  people 


6  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

in  the  kingdom;  that^  in  consequence  of  the 
recent  change  of  ministry^  or  rather  the  revo- 
lution of  European  politics,  Lord  Colebrooke 
was  likely  to  obtain  an  eminent  post  in  the 
administration;  and  that  when,  at  some  fu- 
ture time.  Sir  WiUiam  should  enter  into 
public  life  (^'  as  I  conclude/^  observed  his  lord- 
ship with  peculiar  emphasis,  "  will  be  the  case^^), 
the  friendship  of  such  a  man  might  be  invalu- 
able. 

Replying  to  Lord  Shropshire's  parenthesis 
in  preference  to  any  other  clause  of  his  oration. 
Lady  Helmsley  presumed  to  answer  in  the 
name  and  behalf  of  her  husband,  that  Sir 
William  had  not  the  remotest  intention  of 
entering  into  public  life. 

"  Indeed !''  cried  Lord  Shropshire,  rising 
from  his  chair,  and  assuming  before  the  fire 
an  attitude  peculiar  to  Enghsh  gentlemen,  and 
amazing  to  the  gentlemen  of  every  other  civi- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  7 

lized  country  who  describe  it  as  bitterly  as 
Mrs.  TroUope  describes  the  Iriquoisisms  of  the 
Yankees — "  Then  I  fear  I  did  my  duty  as  a 
guardian  very  negligently,  to  have  rendered 
my  nephew  so  little  sensible  of  his  duty  to  the 
country/^ 

Sir  William,  who  had  retreated  to  the  win- 
dow during  the  discussion  of  the  Colebrooke 
question  which  he  felt  privileged  to  leave  in 
the  hands  of  his  wife,  returned  to  the  hearth- 
rug and  the  argument,  the  moment  his  con- 
sistency was  called  in  question. 

"  You  surely  do  not  think,"  said  he,  address- 
ing his  uncle,  ^*  that  my  stake  in  the  country 
is  of  sufficient  magnitude  to  make  it  incumbent 
on  me  to  get  into  parliament  ? — Consider  how 
limited  are  my  fortune  and  estate,  compared  with 
those  of  twenty  men  of  property  I  could  name 
in  the  county  ?' 

They   have  not  your  family   connexion," 


(( 


8  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

replied  Lord  Shropshire^  in  a  tone  implying, 
"  Your  mother  was  sister  to  an  earl/^ 

"  Family  connexions,  I  fear,  would  scarcely 
extend  my  credit  with  my  banker  sufficiently  to 
defray  the  expenses  of  a  town  establishment/' 
replied  Sir  William. 

"  Perhaps  not.  But  they  may  so  far  tend  to 
advance  you  in  life,  as  to  double  your  income 
by  means  of  a  good  appointment.^' 

"  1  have  no  ambition  to  become  a  place- 
man,'' replied  Sir  William,  calmly.  "  Marcella 
and  I  are  happy  as  we  are.  Had  I  been 
born  with  hereditary  rank  or  hereditary  fortune 
of  sufficient  extent  to  make  it  my  duty  to  stand 
forward,  I  trust  I  should  have  found  courage  to 
do  so.     As  it  is,  my  sphere  is  limited." 

"  The  more  reason  that  it  should  be  ex- 
tended ! — It  was  sufficient  boast  for  the  rulers 
of  ancient  times,  that  they  found  a  city  mud, 
and  left  it  marble.     A  man  in  these  davs  does 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  0 

some  honour  to  his  pedigree,  who  is  born  a 
baronet  and  dies  a  peer/^ 

"  That  must  depend  on  the  means  by  which 
his  peerage  is  achieved/^  observed  Lady  Helms- 
ley,  concealing  as  she  bent  over  her  work  a 
smile  provoked  by  the  bathos  of  the  simile. 

^'  You  do  not  I  hope,  madam,  consider  the 
service  of  the  country  a  dishonourable  road 
to  promotion  }'' — demanded  Lord  Shropshire, 
hastily. 

"  By  no  means  ! — But  when  the  road  is  suffi- 
ciently filled,  I  see  no  reason  why  those  engaged 
in  domestic  avocations  should  resign  them  in 
order  to  jostle  against  others  in  an  overstocked 
career.^^ 

^^  And  may  I  presume  to  inquire  into  the 
nature  of  my  nephew's  avocations  V' — demanded 
Lord  Shropshire,  glancing  contemptuously  at 
the  shooting-jacket  in  which  Sir  William  had 
been  about  to  proceed  to  his  morning's  sport, 

b3 


10  THE   WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD. 

when  stopped  by  his  noble  kinsman's  propo- 
sition of  a  sweeping  demolition  of  Helmsley 
village. 

"  Hush — hush — my  dear  Marcella!''  cried 
the  young  baronet,  playfully  closing  the  Hps  of 
Lady  Helmsley,  as  she  was  about  to  enter  upon 
his  vindication.  "  For  Heaven's  sake  do  not 
bring  down  Lord  Shropshire's  judgment  upon 
the  nonentityship  of  country  gentlemen,  by 
insisting  upon  farming  and  the  quorum,  parish 
business  or  justice  business.  I  know  he  will 
be  kind  enough  to  give  me  up  as  an  incorrigible 
Sir  Clod,  when  I  admit  my  belief  that  my  duty 
to  the  country  is  limited  within  the  confines  of 
Northamptonshire,  as  completely  as  my  happi- 
ness is  bounded  within  the  park  palings  of 
Helmsley  Abbey." 

And  while  Lord  Shropshire  shrugged  his 
shoulders  in  all  that  plenitude  of  pity  with 
which  a  fine  gentleman  looks  down  on  a  country 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  11 

cousin.  Lady  Helmsley's  eye  wandered  from 
her  work  to  the  intelligent  manly  countenance 
of  her  husband,  and  thence  to  the  well-stored 
shelves  of  the  library  where  they  were  sitting. 
She  knew  that  while  Lord  Shropshire  despised 
the  vulgarity  of  their  rustic  pursuits,  they  found 
as  much  pleasure  in  studying  together  the 
beauties  of  Bacon  or  Bolingbroke,  Dante, 
Goethe,  Herder  or  Filicaja,  as  his  lordship  in 
winning  the  odd  trick,  or  exhibiting  his  blue 
ribbon  in  the  mob  of  stars  and  garters  at  the 
levee. 

Both  children  were  satisfied  with  their  toys  ! 
— The  green  mould  upon  a  cheese  furnishes  to 
the  contemplation  of  a  mite,  forests  of  verdure 
as  high  as  the  gigantic  trees  which  some  Indian 
jungle  or  African  wilderness  places  before  the 
eyes  of  an  elephant. — Reste  a  savoir  whether 
the  Earl  or  Baronet  can  claim  the  higher  illus- 
tration ! 


15  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD, 


CHAPTER  II. 


The  world  denies  that  thou  art  fair, 

So,  dearest,  let  it  be. 
If  nought  in  loveliness  compare 

With  what  thou  art  to  me. 
True  beauty  dwells  in  deep  retreats. 

Whose  veil  is  but  removed 
When  heart  with  heart  in  concord  beats 
Both  loving  and  beloved. 

Wordsworth, 

The  happiness  of  Helmsley  Abbey  was  not 
often  invaded  by  the  intrusion  of  titled  relatives. 
The  unaspiring  couple  were  left  for  the  most 
part  to  enjoy  themselves  in  their  own  way  ;  to 
ride  together,  walk  together,  see  with  their  own 
eyes  and  hear  with  their  own  ears  the  progress 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  13 

effected  in  the  village  by  the  fruition  of  their 
schemes  of  benevolence;  return  home  for  a 
stroll  in  the  flower-garden,  a  game  at  billiards, 
or  a  duet  of  harp  and  flute,  of  which  no  carping 
philharmonic  critic  was  at  hand  to  detect  the 
imperfections.  Sir  WiUiam  gave  an  hour  every 
morning  to  little  Harry ;  and  Mary  passed 
more  than  three  times  that  space  of  time  on  a 
Uttle  stool  beside  her  mother's  work-table.  The 
days  of  the  two  idle  people  were,  in  short,  very 
fully  filled  up.  Lady  Helmsley  attended  to  her 
village  school,  while  Sir  William  was  busy  in 
his  plantations  ;  and  they  met  again  after  a  few 
hours  absence,  vnth  as  much  delight  as  if  weeks 
had  divided  them  from  each  other. 

Lady  Helmsley's  pleasures  and  duties,  how- 
ever, were  not  wholly  confined  to  the  Abbey. 
The  eldest  of  her  family,  her  early  marriage  had 
been  a  considerable  loss  to  the  household  of  her 
widowed  father;     and   on    Mr.  Wroughton's 


14  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

death  about  two  years  afterwards,  the  care  of 
her  sister  Emma,  a  girl  of  twelve,  had  fallen  to 
her  share ;  just  as  the  guardianship  of  her  only 
brother  fell  to  that  of  Sir  William.  Young 
Wroughton,  who  had  lately  been  emancipated 
from  tutelage  by  attaining  his  majority,  was 
now  on  his  travels ;  but  Emma  was  still  at 
a  school  in  the  neighbourhood  of  London,  at 
which  the  old  gentleman  had  made  it  his  dying 
request  she  might  complete  her  education. 

For  her  brother  and  sister,  Lady  Helms- 
ley  felt  the  tenderest  and  most  mother-like 
interest.  She  longed  for  the  time  when  Emma 
would  come  home  to  reside  with  her  and  afford 
her  a  female  companion  at  the  Abbey;  and 
Gerald  settle  for  life  at  Wroughton  Hall,  and 
secure  to  Sir  William  a  neighbour  after  his 
own  heart,  in  his  ward  and  brother-in-law. 

Let  those  who  are  enjoying  what  ought  to  be 
a  state   of  perfect   contentment,  beware  how 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  15 

they  presume  to  long  for  any  thing ! — It  is  tempt- 
ing Providence  to  admit  a  wish  ungratified. 
Hope  was  intended  to  be  the  solace  of  the 
unhappy ;  it  becomes  a  crime  when  unlawfully 
assumed  by  the  prosperous.  Were  not  the 
fact,  that — 

Man  never  is,  but  always  to  be  blest, 

the  indication  of  an  instinct  vouchsafed  to  the 
human  race  to  foreshow  the  immortality  of 
the  soul,  our  restless  aspiration  after  future 
bliss  might  be  regarded  as  a  fatal  drawback 
upon  the  happiness  of  life. 

For  when  the  period  arrived  for  Gerald 
Wroughton  to  settle  at  Wroughton  Hall,  and 
Emma  to  be  installed  under  the  protection  of 
her  sister,  the  first  exclamation  of  each  to  the 
other  on  their  arrival  at  the  Abbey,  was — "  How 
ill  Marcella  is  looking  \" — 

In  the  course  of  a  few  weeks,  this  first  ex- 


16  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

pression  of  anxiety  deepened  into  "  How 
strange  that  Sir  William  does  not  see  how 
much  she  is  altered !" — and  when,  at  the  expira- 
tion of  a  few  weeks  more,  Emma  observed  her 
sister  silently  avoid  all  occasions  of  personal 
exertion,  that  she  seized  on  any  excuse  to  evade 
her  daily  ride,  and  would  rise  from  her  harp 
before  the  piece  was  half  concluded  which  they 
had  commenced  together,  she  could  no  longer 
refrain  from  mentioning  to  her  brother-in-law 
the  first  time  they  were  alone  together,  her 
apprehensions  that  Marcella  was  becoming 
seriously  indisposed. 

"  Seriously  indisposed  ?"  cried  the  Baronet, 
with  a  smile.  "  You  are  not  so  much  accus- 
tomed to  watch  her  as  I  am.  Marcella  is 
recovering  from  a  severe  cold ;  and  while 
it  was  on  her,  nothing  could  prevent  her 
sitting  two  hours  a  day  in  that  damp  school- 
house.^^ 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      17 

"  I  do  not  think  she  is  recovering  from  her 
cold, — I  think  she  is  still  suffering  severely  from 
its  effects,''  replied  the  plain-spoken  Emma. 

^*  She  is  always  pale  and  thin  in  the  spring 
of  the  year/'  rejoined  the  unpersuadable  Sir 
William. 

"  But  she  is  not  always  affected  by  that  hectic 
cough,  which  leaves  her  not  a  moment's  peace !" 
persisted  the  affectionate  sister. 

"  Hectic  cough, — hectic  ?"  cried  Sir  William, 
starting  up,  with  horror  impressed  on  every 
feature.  ''  You  surely  do  not  mean, — you  surely 
do  not  think, — it  is  impossible — quite  impossi- 
ble— ^you    should    fancy "    and  while   his 

quivering  lips  refused  to  complete  the  sentence, 
his  eyes  were  filled  with  tears  which  prevented 
his  reading  an  answer  in  the  looks  of  his  sister- 
in-law. 

Had  he  plainly  discerned  the  countenance  of 
Emma  Wroughton,  he  would  have  seen  that 


18      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

she  did  fear  the  worst.  But  his  own  heart 
already  suggested  sufficient  apprehensions. 

^^  I  will  send  off  immediately  for  Fitton  \^' 
cried  he.  "  Good  God  !  my  dear  Emma^  why 
did  you  not  suggest  this  before  ? — Fitton  must 
see  her  in  the  course  of  the  day. — I  shall  not 
rest  till  I  have  heard  Fitton's  opinion.^^ 

"  But  will  it  not  alarm  my  sister  to  have 
medical  advice  so  suddenly  forced  upon  her }" 
suggested  Miss  Wroughton.  '^  Could  not  Dr. 
Fitton  say  that  he  called  in  accidentally^  as  he 
was  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Abbey  ?" 

"  No  V  replied  Sir  William.  "  Marcella 
and  T  have  never  used  arts  or  concealments 
with  each  other.  What  passes  in  mj/  mind, 
passes  naturally  into  hers." 

^^  But  for  her  sake  V  persisted  Emma.  *'  I 
have  always  heard  that  persons  affected  as  I 
believe  her  to  be,  ought  above  all  things  to  be 
kept  in  ignorance  of  their  danger.^' 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      19 

"  Do  not  say  danger !''  exclaimed  Sir  Wil- 
liam, shuddering.  "  I  cannot  even  bear  to  hear 
that  word  apphed  to  my  wife." 

"  Yet  you  are  not  afraid  to  hazard  the  inti- 
mation to  herself !" 

^'  No  !  for  Marcella  has  twice  as  much  cou- 
rage— as  much  fortitude — as  I  have.  You 
know  not  what  strength  of  character  hes  con- 
cealed under  her  serenity  of  disposition." 

'^  If  there  were  but  half  as  much  vigour  in 
her  constitution !"  ejaculated  Emma.  '^  But 
we  have  lost  time  enough  already.  Go  and 
despatch  your  note  to  Northampton,  and  /  will 
prepare  my  sister  for  the  visit.  To  say  the 
truth,  I  think  she  has  long  wished  for  advice." 

^^  Anxious  about  herself,  and  never  own  it 
to  me  \"  cried  William. 

"  Marcella  was  more  scrupulous,  perhaps, 
about  alarming  you  than — " 

c  2 


20  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

But  she  had  no  time  to  finish  the  reproach 
which  the  egotism  of  husband-nature  was  about 
to   extort   from   her    hps.       Sir   Wilham    was 
already  off  to  the    stables^  to  bid  White  Sur- 
rey  be    saddled,   and    his    confidential  groo  m 
despatched  in  search  of  the  family  physician. 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      21 


CHAPTER  III. 


And  when  the  hour  of  sickness  came 

To  warn  us  of  a  coming  blow, 
Till,  as  we  watched  her  wasted  frame. 

Our  steps  grew  hush'd,  our  voices  low  ; 
We  had  not  guessed  what  auguries 

Might  in  the  sufferer's  bosom  be, 
But  for  the  tearful,  wistful  eyes, 

^^  ith  which  she  used  to  gaze  on  thee  ! 

Vane. 

Late  as  the  oracle  was  invoked,  the  decree 
came  only  too  soon  for  the  attached  family 
of  Lady  Helmsley.  So  much  pains  were  taken 
by   the    worthy   doctor   to   impress  upon   the 


22  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

mind  of  the  husband  that  he  was  not  altogether 
without  hope^  that  Sir  WilUam  had  sense 
enough  to  discern  the  desperateness  of  the 
case. 

His  eyes  once  opened,  all  became  clearly  appa- 
rent. The  mother  of  Marcella  had  fallen  an  early 
victim  to  consumption ;  two  sisters,  intervening 
in  age  between  herself  and  Emma,  had  fallen 
victims  to  the  same  insidious  complaint;  and 
the  motive  of  Gerald  Wroughton's  journey  to 
Italy  the  preceding  year,  was  a  professional 
suggestion  that  the  young  man  would  do  well 
to  winter  in  a  milder  climate.  A  similar  sen- 
tence would  now  have  been  pronounced  upon 
Lady  Helmsley,  according  to  the  usual  practice 
of  physicians  of  sending  their  patients  to  die  in 
other  hands,  but  that  spring  instead  of  winter 
was  coming  on.  The  medical  synod,  assem- 
bled to  decide  upon  her  case,  decreed  that 
Helmsley   Abbey    (situated    on    an    eminence 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  23 

Upon  a  fine  gravelly  soil),  was  damp ;  and  that 
her  ladyship  was  likely  to  benefit  by  change  of 
air  and  scene.  A  choice  was  left  between  the 
seaside  and  London ;  when  Sir  William,  eager 
to  ensure  the  best  professional  advice,  decided 
in  favour  of  the  latter. 

In  London,  therefore,  in  a  quiet  house  in 
Upper  Harley  Street,  they  settled  for  the  season ; 
and  Lord  Shropshire's  first  exclamation  on  meet- 
ing his  nephew  accidentally  in  PaU  Mall,  was — 
"  Aha  !  my  patience  has  not  been  much  tried ! — 
I  knew  we  should  have  you  at  last.  But  Lady 
Helmsley  seemed  so  positive,  that  I  did  not 
fancy  it  would  be  so  soon.  Give  me  your  arm 
up  St.  James's  Street.  Do  you  go  to  the  levee 
to-morrow  ? — Where  are  you  in  town  ? — By  the 
way,  there  is  a  vacancy  at  Arthurs,  where  I  put 
you  up  five  years  ago. — What  do  you  think  of 
trying  it  ?" 

Replying  by  rational  gradation  to  these  nu- 


24  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE   WORLD. 

merous  interrogatories,  Sir  William  made  it  as 
apparent  to  his  inattentive  kinsman  as  the 
rumble  of  passing  drays  would  admit,  that 
while  others  came  to  town  to  anoint  themselves 
with  the  oil  of  gladness,  to  enjoy  the  best  din- 
ners with  their  worst  friends  and  the  worst 
dinners  at  the  best  clubs,  to  labour  diligently 
in  their  daily  vocation  in  the  ring  and  weekly  at 
the  Zoological, — to  give  three  nights  a  week  to 
his  public  duties  at  the  Opera  and  Almack^s, 
and  one  or  two  perhaps  to  private  duties  of 
ayeing  or  noing  in  the  House  of  Commons, — 
he  came  to  afford  companionship  to  the  gentle 
airings  of  an  invalid,  to  sit  silent  beside  her 
sofa,  read  to  her  when  she  was  strong  enough 
to  listen,  and  listen  when  she  was  strong  enough 
to  talk. 

Lord  Shropshire  shrugged  his  shoulders  in 
reply,  almost  as  contemptuously  as  when  Sir 
WilUam  declined  at  Helmsley  Abbey  an  intro- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  25 

duction  to  Lord  Colebrooke.  There  was  b'lt 
one  word  of  consolation  in  all  he  heard.  Lady 
Helmsley  was  dangerously  ill,  and  the  extin- 
guisher might  possibly  be  removed  from  the 
head  of  the  uxorious  husband.  He  had  half  a 
mind  to  advise  him  to  place  her  under  the 
homoeopathic  system,  and  accelerate  the  moment 
of  release.  But  Marcella^s  good  sense  had 
been  as  usual  beforehand  with  him.  Content- 
ing herself  with  the  fruits  of  long-established 
experience,  she  followed  the  counsels  she  had 
already  found  efficient ;  and  followed  them  only 
to  confirm  the  prescience  of  advisers,  who 
from  the  first  admitted  to  her  husband  that  her 
case  was  hopeless  ! 

All  he  had  to  bear  from  the  moment  that 
terrible  sentence  was  pronounced,  can  be  con- 
ceived only  by  those  compelled  to  watch  over 
the  declining  moments  of  a  beinsf  tenderly 
beloved.     She  was  to  go ! — She  was  to  leave 

VOL.  I.  C 


26      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD, 

him ! — The  unruffled  surface  of  his  unexcep- 
tionable happiness  was  to  be  broken  up^  and  he 
must  not  indulge  in  a  single  moan,  a  single 
murmur ! — He  must  be  patient — cheerful — com- 
panionable.— Sometimes,   he  fancied  Marcella 
blind  to  her  danger,  and  that  it  was  his  duty  to 
excite  her  apprehensions.   At  others,  he  thought 
he  could  detect  indications  that  she  was  more 
enlightened  than  they  supposed,  —  suppress- 
ing the  admission  of  her  fears  in  deference  to 
the  feelings  of  those  around  her ;  and  then,  he 
would  chide  Emma  for  the  indiscretion  of  her 
anxiety,  and  denounce  vengeance  on  those  who 
might  suiFer  their  sympathy  to  excite  the  ap- 
prehensions of  the  dying  woman.     The  care  of 
her  mortal  body  seemed  to  bid  him  keep  silence ; 
the    care    of   her    immortal    soul    to   require 
him  to  speak.     Perplexed  between  his  double 
duty,   he  listened  to   the    commands   of   the 
physicians  that  Lady  Helmsley  should  on  no 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  27 

account  be  made  aware  of  the  precariousness 
of  her  situation;  then,  in  the  silence  of  his 
own  chamber,  clasped  his  hands  desparingly 
together,  as  he  reflected  that  the  house  of  the 
departing  Christian  was  to  be  set  in  order, — that 
he  was  not  deahng  by  Marcella  as  Marcella 
would  have  dealt  by  him. 

But  this  dilemma  was  painfully  set  at  rest 
when,  as  summer  advanced,  the  medical  men 
suggested  that  her  ladyship  ought  to  profit  by 
the  season  for  a  journey  to  the  south,  and 
ensure  a  milder  climate  for  the  ensuing  winter. 
Grasping  at  this  promise  of  delay  if  not  relief. 
Sir  William  accordingly  began  to  talk  to  the 
invalid  of  Hyeres  or  Nice. 

"  Next  winter,  my  dear  husband,  I  shall  be 
beyond  the  reach  of  climate  !^^  replied  Lady 
Helmsley  to  his  proposal,  the  first  time  they 
were  alone  together.  "  If  change  be  desirable 
for  me,  let  it  be  back  to  the  Abbey.     It  is  my 

c  2 


28      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

wish  to  die  at  home^ — to  be  buried  at  home.'^ 
For  worlds  could  not  Helmsley  have  com- 
manded the  utterance  of  a  word  in  contradic- 
tion to  these  forebodings  !  To  hear  them  from 
the  lips  of  his  wife^ — his  beloved,  loving,  heart 
in  heart,  soul  in  soul  Marcella, — was  as  if  their 
meaning  reached  him  for  the  first  time.  He 
felt  that  since  she  said  it,  it  must  be  so.  He 
was  about  to  lose  her.  He  was  about  to  be 
alone ! 

Compassionating  the  frenzy  of  grief  she  had 
excited.  Lady  Helmsley  lay  silent  on  her  sofa, 
her  cold  fingers  intwining  the  throbbing  con- 
vulsed hand  of  him  who  sat  beside  her,  with 
his  face  concealed  against  the  back  of  his  chair. 
She  did  not  reiterate  her  request.  She  did  not 
repeat  her  forebodings.  She  lay  speechless  and 
patient ;  till  at  length,  in  hoarse  and  scarcely 
articulate  accents,  he  repUed, — ^^  We  wdU  return 
to  Helmsley  then,  next  week.'^     Such  was  his 


THR    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  29 

mode  of  confirming  the  sentence  she  had  passed 
upon  herself! 

All  was  prepared  for  their  departure.  Poor 
Emma  felt  that  it  would  indeed  be  a  relief  to  be 
spared  (as  she  sat  every  night  watching  unsus- 
pected in  the  dressing-room  of  the  invalid),  the 
intrusive  roll  of  the  carriages,  dashing  from 
one  entertainment  to  another ;  every  morning, 
the  sight  of  gay  equipages  filled  with  the 
thoughtless  and  happy,  proceeding  to  Epsom 
or  Ascot — dejeuners  or  picnics  ;  and  all  the 
thousand  faces  of  giddy  London, 

Smiling,  as  if  earth  contained  no  tomb. 

Home  was  best  for  them  all  !  home  with  its 
holy  associations;  —  home  with  its  precious 
reminiscences  of  duties  fulfilled  by  the  sufferer 
whose  probation  was  nearly  at  an  end,  and 
whose  beatification  on  the  eve  of  accomplish- 
ment. 


30  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

Even  Sir  William  had  nothing  to  regret  in 
London.  His  friendships  there  were  limited ; 
his  very  acquaintanceships  less  extensive  than 
those  of  other  men  of  his  condition  in  hfe. 
He  had  none  to  whom  to  turn  for  sympathy  in 
his  affliction.  As  to  Lord  Shropshire,  beyond 
sending  his  servant  three  times  a  week  with 
inquiries,  to  which  it  was  clear  he  never  hstened 
to  the  answers  since  every  time  he  met  his 
nephew  he  seemed  surprised  to  learn  that  Lady 
Helmsley  was  worse,  —  he  gave  no  token  of 
interest  in  the  event. 

One  day,  as  Sir  William  was  sauntering  out 
of  Ridgway^s  shop  where  he  had  been  selecting 
new  publications  for  the  amusement  of  the 
invalid,  he  encountered  his  uncle  arm  in  arm 
with  a  distinguished  looking  middle-aged  man ; 
and  it  was  impossible  to  refuse  joining  them 
up  Bond  Street,  whither  all  three  were  pro- 
ceeding.     Lord    Shropshire,    as    in    decency 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  31 

bound,  was  minute  in  his  inquiries  after  the 
dying  woman.  But  it  was  the  stranger  who 
took  note  of  Helmsley's  rephes,  and  interest 
in  the  details  the  doting  husband  found  it 
difficult  to  withhold.  Helmsley's  eyes  were 
filled  with  tears,  and  his  voice  faltered  as  he 
spoke ;  and  the  stranger,  by  goodnaturedly 
suggesting  some  change  of  diet  or  position 
supposed  to  yield  alleviation  in  cases  such  as 
that  of  Marcella,  won  his  regard  in  a  moment. 
He  spoke  in  a  tone  of  concern,  he  listened 
with  a  look  of  interest.  It  was  impossible  not 
to  like  him.  Even  after  learning  from  his  uncle 
at  the  moment  of  separation,  that  his  well- 
bred,  well-aflfectioned  auditor  was  no  other  than 
Lord  Coiebrooke,  Sir  William  felt  strongly 
disposed  in  his  favour. 

The  circumstance  was  scarcely  worth  men- 
tioning at  home ;  there  were  topics  of  far  higher 
interest  to  be  discussed  between  Marcella  and 


32  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

himself.  But  a  day  or  two  afterwards,  the 
evening  before  their  departure  from  town,  Lady 
Helmsley  heard  him  inquiring  of  her  sister  whe- 
ther Burke^s  Peerage  were  packed  up  ? 

"  Yes,  It  was  in  the  book-box  already 
despatched  by  the  waggon  into  Northampton- 
shire/^ 

^'  I  wanted  to  see/^  observed  Sir  William,  in 
explanation,  "  whether  Lord  Colebrooke  has 
any  unmarried  daughters/' 

This  explanation  seemed  to  require  further 
explanation ;  but  Marcella  lay  too  much  ex- 
hausted, and  Emma  stood  by  in  attendance 
too  anxious,  to  experience  any  inquisitiveness 
respecting  the  curiosity  of  Sir  William.  He 
was  therefore  spared  the  necessity  of  inform- 
ing them  that,  as  he  was  crossing  Cavendish 
Square  on  his  way  home  that  afternoon  with 
his  eyes  fixed  despondingly  on  the  pavement, 
he  was  struck  by  the  mention  of  his  own  name. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  33 

and  looking  up^  found  himself  accosted  by 
Lord  Colebrooke  with  the  politest — nay,  the 
kindest  inquiries  after  the  health  of  Lady 
Helmsley.  Lord  Colebrooke  had  drawn  up 
to  make  the  inquiry ;  and  at  a  little  distance, 
reining  in  a  beautiful  horse  apparently  right 
proud  of  its  most  delicate  rider,  sat  a  young 
and  lovely  woman,  with  the  most  graceful 
figure  and  seat  on  horseback,  he  had  ever 
happened  to  behold. 

There  was  so  much  life,  so  much  character, 
so  much  charm  in  the  countenance  of  the 
stranger,  as  contrasted  with  the  two  female 
faces  he  was  now  in  the  habit  of  contem- 
plating,— the  one  so  sick,  the  other  so  sorrowful, 
— that  it  seemed  as  if  all  the  impulses  of  youth, 
health,  and  intelligence  were  gathered  there 
in  marvellous  combination;  and  when,  at  the 
close  of  his  short  dialogue  with  Lord  Cole- 
brooke, he  touched  his  hat  in  parting  salutation, 

c  3 


34      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

the  lady,  whom  involuntarily  he  included  in 
his  obeisance,  returned  it  with  a  bow  and  smile 
so  sweet  and  gracious,  that  after  they  had 
proceeded  on  their  ride  along  Wigmore  Street 
towards  the  Park,  he  found  himself  gazing 
after  them  instead  of  pursuing  his  way  home- 
wards. 

No  peerage  being  at  hand   on  his   arrival 

in  Harley  Street,  for  the  satisfaction  of  his 
curiosity,  the  lady  and  the  lord  were  soon 
effaced  from  his  mind.  He  had  subjects,  just 
then,  of  engrossing  interest  to  occupy  his 
attention. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  35 


CHAPTER  IV. 


Give  me  my  robe — put  on  my  crown ! — I  have 
Immortal  longings  in  me ! 

Shakspeare. 

That  polished  portion  of  the  community 
self-styled  the  World,  is  a  brilliant  thing  to 
look  on ; — but  like  the  lark-traps  which,  by  the 
perpetual  motion  of  a  few  fragments  of  looking- 
glass,  simulate  sunshine,  its  brightness  consists 
in  movement, — incessant  movement.  In  its 
conversations,  a  thousand  subjects  are  rapidly 
whirled  round  to  sparkle  and  be  forgotten ;  its 
entertainments  are  severally  nothing,  but  the 
rapidity  of  their  succession  consolidates  them 


36  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

into  one  gorgeous  whole.  There  is  no  pause 
for  examination, — no  delay  for  discussion  ; — 
the  feathers  wave, — the  diamonds  glitter, — the 
music  quavers, — the  sweet  lips  prattle, — the 
lustres  gleam; — the  vivacity  of  ten  thousand 
souls  is  blended  into  a  single  outbreak  of 
hilarity ! 

Even  some  dire  event  infusing  anguish  into 
the  happiest  household  circle,  is  discussed  by  a 
passing  word.  "  Have  you  any  news  of  the 
Helmsleys  V — demanded  Lord  Colebrook  of 
Lord  Shropshire,  one  night,  as  they  came  into 
momentary  collision  in  the  lobby  of  the  opera, 
or  the  vestibule  of  the  House  of  Lords,  or  some 
other  place  of  public  amusement.  And  the 
noble  kinsman's  reply  ^^  No ; — but  I  fancy  my 
nephew  will  soon  be  released  from  his  attend- 
ance. Halford  said^when  they  left  town,  that 
ten  days  must  end  it  1^' — comprised  the  melan- 
choly history  which   left    not  a   dry   eye   in 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  37 

Helmsley  village,  and  reduced  the  inmates 
of  the  Abbey  to  a  state  bordering  on  dis- 
traction ! 

The  only  person  who  retained  any  degree  of 
serenity,  was  the  dying  woman.  After  the 
subsiding  of  the  accession  of  fever  produced 
by  a  journey  which  it  had  taken  four  days  to 
accomplish,  Lady  Helmsley  resumed  all  her 
usual  composure.  She  knew  that  she  was  to 
die, — that  her  days,  her  hours,  were  numbered. 
But  the  intimate  confidence  in  which,  for  seven 
years  past,  she  had  lived  with  her  husband, 
left  her  no  anxieties  on  his  account  or  those 
of  her  children.  Her  wishes  and  projects 
for  them  were  fully  known  to  him ;  and  she 
was  too  well  acquainted  with  the  strength  of 
his  affection  not  to  feel  that  she  was  bequeath- 
ing their  interests  to  the  care  of  the  best  of 
fathers. 

Nevertheless,  with  the  anxiety  of  a  tender 


38  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

friend  about  to  depart  on  a  long  journey,  she 
could  not  altogether  refrain  from  charges  to 
her  sister  respecting  the  care  of  those  helpless 
creatures,  particularly  of  the  little  girl. 

^^  I  trust  Knowles  will  not  be  tempted  to 
quit  Mary,  even  after  she  is  in  the  hands  of  a 
governess/^  said  she,  in  a  faint  voice,  one  even- 
ing to  Miss  Wroughton,  "  Mary  is  delicate ; 
and  Knowles  so  thoroughly  understands  her 
constitution.  Should  Helmsley  marry  again 
(as  in  all  probability  will  be  the  case),  changes 
might  arise.  Promise  me,  my  dear  Emma, 
that  you  will  do  your  utmost  to  keep  that  good 
woman  about  the  children  }'^ 

'^  Her  own  inchnation  will  keep  her  there,'"* 
replied  Miss  Wroughton,  deeply  affected  by 
such  a  petition.  "  And  Sir  WilHam  will  never 
replace  the  ^vife  he  loves  so  dearly .'' 

*^  No  man  can  answer  for  himself  on  such  a 
point.     And  why  should  he? — Why  should  I 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  39 

wish  to  perpetuate  his  regret,  or  prevent 
some  other  woman  from  enjoying  the  happiness 
I  have  enjoyed  ?  A  prudent  remarriage  would 
probably  be  the  best  thing  that  could  befal  the 
children.  You  are  too  young,  my  dear  Emma, 
to  remain  here  as  their  protectress.  You  will 
live  here  with  Gerald, — marry — become  a  mo- 
ther. It  will  be  a  better  thing  for  Mary  that 
lier  father — " 

She  could  not  conclude  the  sentence;  and 
Emma,  aware  how  differently  her  sister  had 
always  expressed  herself  in  the  similar  case  of 
their  own  father,  saw  what  violence  she  was 
doing  to  her  feelings,  in  order  to  pre-as- 
sure  excuses  for  any  future  measure  to  her 
husband. 

To  Sir  William,  the  patient  sufferer  had 
already  exerted  herseK  to  manifest  a  similar 
opinion.  A  presentiment  founded  on  her 
knowledge  of  his  character,  assured  her  that  he 


40      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

would  marry  again.     She   chose   him   to  feel 
himself  thoroughly  enfranchised. 

Anxious,  too,  not  to  increase  his  present 
anguish  by  the  sight  of  her  regret  at  quitting  a 
world  endeared  by  the  tenderness  of  many  and 
the  esteem  of  all,  Marcella  was  careful  to  let  no 
murmur  escape  her  lips,  and  to  avoid  all  indul- 
gences in  those  tender  weaknesses  which,  more 
than  any  uttered  phrase,  indicate  the  conscious- 
ness of  approaching  dissolution.  Her  decline 
was  more  tedious,  more  painful  than  she 
had  anticipated ;  not  that  ethereal  wasting,  the 
delusive  creation  of  poets  and  novelists,  but 
the  fearful  struggle  of  the  soul  with  decaying 
nature ;  the  harassing  efforts,  the  restlessness, 
he  exhaustion,  the  momentary  delirium  fol- 
lowed by  hours  of  inanition.  Throughout  all 
this,  the  husband  watched  and  ministered  with 
a  fervour  of  patient  affection  as  feminine  almost 
as   that   of  the   sister.      He   would   send    the 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  41 

others  to  bed,  and  remain  in  secret  by  the  bed- 
side, watching  long  after  the  hirehng  watchers 
were  outwearied  and  at  rest. 

It  was  on  one  of  those  nights,  when  he  was 
alone  with  the  sick,  that  what  might  be  termed 
the  agony  of  Marcella  commenced.  His  hand 
was  lying  beside  her  own  on  the  coverlid, — not 
clasping  it,  lest  the  pressure  should  be  too 
much  for  its  wasted  fingers ;  when  of  a  sudden, 
with  an  unnatural  accession  of  voice,  she  began 
to  talk,  as  with  the  tongues  of  angels,  of  God, 
of  immortality,  of  the  rewards  of  the  just. 
Those  who  have  watched  beside  the  dying, 
know  how  often  this  elevation  of  spirit  conse- 
quent upon  the  disorganization  of  mortal  na- 
ture, tends  to  sooth  and  dignify  sufferings 
otherwise  insupportable. 

Having  anxiously  examined  her  face,  which 
was  flushed  with  hectic  spots,  Helmsley  saw 
that  the  strain  of  triumph  in  which  she  was  in- 


42      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

dulging,  was  the  song  of  the  dying  swan  ;  and, 
as  if  jealous  that  any  but  himself  should  listen 
to  those  words  of  Heavenly  exaltation,  forbore 
to  summon  assistance.  Marcella  was  beyond 
the  reach  of  mortal  succour ;  and  kneeling  by 
her  bedside,  he  gathered  into  his  heart  every 
look,  every  syllable,  each  one  of  which  might 
prove  the  last. 

In  this  attitude,  were  they  found  when  morn- 
ing dawned.  But  from  the  moment  Miss 
Wroughton  and  the  nurse  busied  themselves  in 
administering  remedies  and  suggesting  aid, 
Marcella  became  silent.  The  smile  ceased  to 
play  upon  her  lips ;  the  light  of  love  ceased 
to  beam  from  her  eyes  ; — the  sun  was  setting ! 
— Her  breathing  became  more  difficult, — her 
hands  more  cold ;  and  as  if  aware  chat  the 
power  of  motion  was  departing  and  death 
creeping  upward  towards  her  heart,  her  last 
hurried  movement  was  to  extend  one  of  those 


^  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  43 

wasted  hands  towards  her  husband, — her  last 
incoherent  utterance — the  words  "  for  ever  !^^ — 

He  listened.  No  other  followed.  The  hand 
lay  motionless  in  his,^ — the  half-parted  Hps  were 
breathless, — all  was  over.  —  The  spoiler  had 
been  permitted  to  work  his  worst  in  the  earthly- 
Eden  so  long  allotted  to  the  unhappy  Helms- 
ley.  He  was  alone  there  now; — alone  with  his 
motherless  children, — alone  with  the  memory 
of  the  past. 

The  lapse  of  only  a  few  hours  after  the 
decease  of  Lady  Helmsley,  suffered  to  prove 
to  what  influence  the  Abbey  had  been  indebted 
for  its  serene  and  well-ordered  existence. 
Emancipated  from  the  restraint  imposed  by  her 
gentle  presence,  Sir  William  threw  aside  all  self- 
control.  Resigning  himself  to  the  impetuosity 
of  a  despair  aggravated  by  long  estrangement 
from  rest,  exercise,  and  food,  the  bereaved  hus- 
band became   excited   to  a  degree  of  frenzy. 


44  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

which  rendered  it  impossible  for  the  physicians 
to  quit  the  house ;  and  when,  after  many  days 
he  was  restored  to  a  sense  of  his  situation,  he 
found  that  Emma  and  the  children  had  been 
removed  to  Wroughton  Hall ;  and  that  Gerald, 
his  brother-in-law,  had  taken  upon  himself  those 
necessary  duties  which  ought  to  have  fallen  to 
the  share  of  the  husband  and  the  father.  It 
was  clear  that  the  prop  was  gone  from  the 
house.  The  afflicted  man  gave  himself  up  to 
his  weakness, — to  his  selfishness, — to  the  un- 
controlled flow  of  human  passion. 

At  first,  he  insisted  on  administering  to  the 
last  rites,  and  rendering  honour  to  her  who  had 
been  a  crown  of  honour  unto  him.  But  he 
had  not  even  strength  to  quit  his  room;  and 
the  brother  to  whom  Marcella  had  been  a 
mother,  fulfilled  the  part  of  a  son  to  her  re- 
mains. The  village  poured  forth  its  throng  of 
mourners  ; — the  Abbey  its  solitary  representa- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  45 

tive.  The  voice  of  the  preacher  was  heard,— 
the  ratthng  of  the  dust  on  the  coffin, — the  stone 
was  rolled  to  the  mouth  of  the  sepulchre,— 
and  another  human  destiny  was  accomplished  I 


46  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 


CHAPTER  V. 


Once  a  day  I'll  visit 
The  chapel  where  she  lies  ;  and  tears  shed  there, 
Shall  be  my  recreation  :  so  long  as 
Nature  will  bear  up  with  this  exercise, 
So  long  I  daily  vow  to  use  it. 

Shakspeare. 

Sir  William  Helmsley  submitted  pa- 
tiently to  the  mandate  of  his  physicians  that 
he  should  leave  home  for  a  time;  but  instead 
of  turning  his  submission  to  good  account  by 
selecting  a  change  of  scene  ensuring  change  of 
associations,  he  went  no  further  than  Wroughton 
Hall,  where  Emma's  maiden  aunt,  Mrs.  Mar- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  47 

garet  Wroughton,  had  become  a  permanent 
resident  with  the  family  of  her  favourite 
niece. 

But  Wroughton  Hall  was  full  of  Marcella! 
— It  was  there  Sir  William  had  wooed  and  won 
the  best  of  daughters^  to  become  the  best  of 
wives.  There  hung  her  portrait  on  the  wall ; 
there  the  early  specimens  of  her  own  artist-hke 
skill.  The  village^  the  household,  overflowed 
with  legends  of  her  virtues.  It  was  not  the 
spot  that  should  have  been  chosen  to  subdue 
the  intensity  of  his  regrets.  Nay,  when  the 
time  came  for  him  to  return  home,  he  felt  that 
his  temporary  estrangement  from  the  scene  of 
his  melancholy  trials  had  only  served  to  pre- 
serve the  impression  more  vivid  in  his  soul; 
and  he  resolved  that  months  should  elapse, 
consecrated  to  grief  and  seclusion,  before  he 
suffered  himself  to  be  again  tempted  from  the 
Abbey.     Even  Gerald  was   too   cheerful   and 


48      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

too  much  engrossed  by  the  worldly  interests  of 
life,  to  be  a  palatable  companion  to  him.  He 
fancied  that  his  exceeding  heavy  sorrow  should 
be  all  in  all  with  others  as  with  himself. 

Nothing  that  could  tend  to  ahenate  the 
sources  of  his  grief  was  neglected.  He  would 
sit  for  hours  in  Marcella's  dressing-room, 
surrounded  by  the  objects  which  had  ministered 
to  her  daily  use,  as  if  expecting  to  find  her 
re-enter  the  room  and  resume  her  place  by  his 
side.  He  would  wander  by  moonlight  in  all 
her  favourite  haunts,  calling  upon  her  name  and 
breathing  aloud  the  terms  of  endearment  in 
which  it  was  her  custom  to  address  him.  He 
would  repair,  in  the  gloom  of  twilight,  to  the 
old  church,  and  secured  from  \Tilgar  intrusion, 
throw  himself  weeping  on  her  grave,  with 
passionate  exclamations  of  tenderness  and 
anguish.  It  was  fortunate  for  the  two  poor 
babes  that  they  were  spared  the  sight  of  all  this 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  49 

distraction.  Their  father  had  consented  to 
leave  them  under  the  charge  of  their  female 
relatives  at  Wroughton ;  jealous  that  even  those 
two  beloved  creatures  should  intrude  into  the 
solitude  consecrated  to  the  memory  of  the 
dead. 

Sir  William^s  household  and  tenants  predicted 
of  course  that  the  young  widower  would  fall  a 
victim  to  such  excess  of  sorrow.  ^^  Poor 
master  was  quite  broken-hearted ;  poor  master 
was  hastening  fast  after  my  lady.^^  But  tenants 
and  servants  are  superficial  observers;  and 
those  who  have  more  leisure  to  expatiate  upon 
the  nature  of  men  and  things^  have  ascertained 
that  grief  is  a  plant  often  killed  by  over  cherish- 
ing. Almost  every  other  passion  increases  in 
proportion  to  the  space  allotted  for  its  growth ; 
but  sorrow,  which  availeth  nothing  to  the 
advantage  of  the  dead  or  living,  is  by  the 
wisdom  of  Providence  limited  in  its  existence. 

VOL.  I.  D 


50      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

The  holy  and  precious  feeling  which  embalms 
the  memory  of  those  we  are  called  upon  to 
resign,  may  sanctify  a  whole  life  by  its  mild  and 
silent  influence ;  but  the  grief  which  partakes  of 
passion, — the  grief  which  is  loud,  vehement^ 
and  selfish, — frets  itself  to  death  and  to  ob- 
livion. 

One  of  the  wise  ones  of  the  earth  has  ob- 
served, that  our  sorrow  for  the  dead  is  at  first 
profound  and  genuine,  afterwards  a  matter 
of  habit,  and  at  length  a  matter  of  hypocrisy. 
At  the  close  of  his  year  of  widowhood.  Sir 
William  Helmsley,  though  far  from  any  assump- 
tion of  affliction,  had  reached  the  second  stage 
of  consolation;  he  pursued  his  visits  to  Mar- 
ceUa's  chamber  and  MarceUa^s  grave,  more  as 
a  matter  of  custom,  than  at  the  prompting  of 
his  earlier  despair.  Time,  the  comforter,  had 
wrought  its  usual  miracles.  The  wound  was 
cicatrized.     The   world,   with    its    myriads   of 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      51 

stirring  sights  and  sounds  and  interests,  had 
proved  too  much  for  the  opposing  influence  of 
a   single,   silent,    soUtary   sepulchre.      If    Sir 
William    Helmsley   still   persisted   in  refusing 
the  invitations  of  his  neighbours,  and  clinging 
to  the  seclusion  of  the  Abbey,  it  was  more  for 
want  of  knowing  Itow  to  resume  his  habitual 
place  in  society,  more  from  the  egotism  of  a 
reserved  Enghshman  who  fancies  that  the  eyes 
of  all  the  world  are  fixed  upon  his  comings  and 
goings,  than  because  he  delighted  in  seclusion. 
The  menials  at  the  Abbey  had  laid  aside  their 
sable  garments ;    the    little    children  resumed 
their  gay  attire.     Changes  and  improvements 
were  going  on.     Nothing  remained  of  Marcella 
save  a  certain  stern  gravity  on  the  brow  of  Sir 
William,   and   a   pensive   sadness  occasionally 
overspreading   the   fair   brow   of    the    faithful 
sister. 

Gerald  Wroughton  was  among  the  first  to 
D  2 


52  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

notice  with  regret,  the  moral  insignificance  into 
which  his  brother-in-law  was  sinking.  At  three- 
and-twenty,  Gerald  was  animated  by  a  more 
mercurial  spirit  than  Helmsley  at  twenty-eight. 
There  was  something  of  the  impetuosity,  the 
fervour,  so  often  connected  with  organic  disease, 
in  the  nature  of  Gerald.  With  him,  to  feel  to 
say  were  the  work  of  a  moment. 

Advised  by  the  physician  with  whom  he  had 
formerly  travelled  on  the  continent,  to  pass  as 
many  of  his  mnters  as  possible  in  a  southern 
climate,  Mr.  Wroughton,  when  the  second 
winter  of  his  residence  in  England  was  about 
to  set  in,  fancied  that  a  warmer  atmosphere  was 
indispensable.  But  though  he  felt  no  reluc- 
tance at  leaving  his  sister  under  the  care  of 
their  sage  and  sober  kinswoman,  in  a  house  so 
guarded  round  with  security  as  Wroughton 
Hall,  he  had  some  scruple  about  abandoning 
poor  Helmsley   to   his  querulous   melancholy. 


THE    WOMAN    OP   THE    WORLD.  53 

He  knew  that  his  brother-in-law  still  declined 
all  overtures  of  civility  from  Lord  Shropshire 
and  his  country  neighbours. 

^^  If  I  leave  him  shut  up  with  Emma,  the 
children,  and  aunt  Margaret,  he  will  turn 
hermit  and  let  grow  his  beard  before  my  re- 
turn ;^^  mused  the  kind-hearted  young  man. 
^^  What  if  I  could  persuade  him  to  bear  me 
company? — He  has  never  been  abroad;  the 
excitement  of  new  scenes  might  be  of  service." 

Conscious,  however,  of  the  weakness  of  the 
man  with  whom  he  had  to  deal,  instead  of 
proposing  the  tour  to  Helmsley  as  a  matter  of 
recreation,  he  suggested  it  •as  a  sacrifice  of 
good  will  towards  himself. 

^^  Dr.  Moorsom,  the  physician  from  whose 
treatment  he  had  derived  so  much  benefit,  had 
accompanied  an  English  family  to  Naples.  He 
wished  to  pass  some  months  under  his  care. 
He  wished   to   get  through  the   winter  in  a 


54  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

milder  climate.  It  would  be  an  act  of  real 
kindness  on  the  part  of  Sir  William  to  bear 
him  company/^ 

Helmsley  was  thus  half-startled^  half-be- 
guiled into  an  expedition  which  was  perhaps 
the  happiest  event  that  could  befal  him.  His 
preparations  were  soon  achieved;  Wroughton, 
an  experienced  traveller,  undertook  all  the  bu- 
siness part  of  the  journey ;  and  there  remained 
only  for  Sir  William  to  take  a  tender  farewell 
of  his  children,  from  whom  nothing  less  than 
the  interest  of  his  beloved  Marcella^s  only 
brother  would  have  induced  him  to  part.  It 
was  a  heartrending  pang  to  quit  the  Abbey; 
but,  as  with  most  other  pangs,  the  pain  was 
momentary.  Before  they  reached  Calais,  his 
spirits  were  rising;  and  by  the  time  they  set 
foot  in  Paris,  Sir  WilHam  was  ready  to  look 
about  him  and  be  amused. 

"  So  your  neighbour,  my  nephew,  is  gone 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      55 

abroad  ?^^ — observed  Lord  Shropshire  to  Mr. 
De  Ligne,  a  Northamptonshire  squire,  whose 
estates  bordered  upon  Helmsley  Abbey.  "  Had 
it  not  been  for  the  newspapers,  I  should  have 
supposed  him  still  vegetating  at  his  place ;  for 
he  had  not  even  the  grace  to  apprize  me  of 
his  intentions.^^ 

'^  Sir  William  has  suffered  deeply  from  the 
loss  of  his  wife/^  observed  Mr.  De  Ligne, 
gravely ;  ^^  I  never  saw  a  young  man  more 
miserably  cut  up.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
change  of  scene  will  be  of  use  to  him.  He 
would  never  have  recovered  himself  at  the 
Abbey.'' 

^^  Weak  in  that  as  in  all  the  rest  !"-^  observed 
the  noble  kinsman.  "  As  if  local  influences 
ought  to  weigh  upon  a  man  possessing  any 
strength  of  mind  ! — As  if  the  tinkle  of  a  guitar 
and  the  sight  of  a  volcano,  were  indispensable 
to  wean  a  man  from  the  memory  of  a  wife ! — 


56  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Never  did  a  young  fellow  so  fling  away  his 
opportunities  as  William  Helmsley ! — After 
forming  at  one-and-twenty  the  sort  of  detest- 
able respectable  match  which  a  guardian  had 
no  right  to  oppose,  though  it  advanced  him 
not  a  jot  in  fortune  or  connexion,  he  ties  him- 
self to  his  wife's  apronstring  for  the  bortit 
routine  of  a  country  gentleman ! — And  now, 
when  the  wife  luckily  dies  in  time  to  leave 
him  an  opening  into  life,  instead  of  profiting 
by  the  vacancy  occasioned  by  Theydon's  ele- 
vation to  the  peerage  to  come  forward  for 
Stamford,  off  goes  the  blockhead  to  the  con- 
tinent, to  bear-lead  a  brother-in-law  who  they 
tell  me  might  make  some  figure  had  he  fallen 
into  better  hands/' 

"  Mr.  Wroughton  is  a  hvely  young  man,  of 
good  abilities ;  but  by  no  means  so  fine  a  scholar 
as  my  friend  Helmsley,"  observed  Mr.  De  Ligne, 
who  was  an  F.S.A.  and  F.R.S. 


THE    WOMAN    0^    THE    WORLD.  57 

''  Scholar  ?  of  what  use  his  scholarship  [" 
exclaimed  the  earl^  with  contempt,  "  Give  me 
a  man  who  knows  the  world.  It  is  with  man- 
kind_5  not  books,  we  are  appointed  to  live  ;  and 
mankind  should  be  our  study .^^ 

"  The  knowledge  of  mankind  is,  perhaps, 
best  attainable  through  the  study  of  books/^ 
observed  Mr.  De  Ligne,  sententiously,  on  tip- 
toe for  an  argument.  But  Lord  Shropshire  was 
thinking  more  of  his  nephew  than  of  his  theory. 

^^  I  have  no  doubt/^  cried  he;  "  Helmsley 
will  return  to  England  as  great  a  boor  as 
ever;  and  marry  the  daughter  of  some  other 
country  squire,  or  perhaps  of  the  parson  of  the 
parish.  There^s  not  a  grain  of  spirit  in  the 
fellow's  composition  !  I  dearly  loved  my  poor 
sister,  Lady  Carohne.  But,  by  Jove  !  it  would 
not  give  me  a  moment's  concern  were  I 
never  again  to  hear  mention  of  the  name  of 
William  Helmsley." 

D  3 


58      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


Kalb  is  meant  for  the  feather-brained  thing  of  tags  and 
laces,  which  inhabits  courts  ;  but  he  wants  the  grace  and 
agihty  proper  to  the  species. 

Schiller's  Letters. 


Little  did  Lord  Shropshire  foresee  what 
cause  he  might  one  day  have  to  desire  that 
the  name  of  Sir  WiUiam  were  to  remain 
famihar  in  his  own  ears,  and  those  of  the 
world. 

Lord  Shropshire  was  the  father  of  an  only 
son,    of    whom    he    thought    as    highly,     as 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      59 

slightingly  of  his  nephew.  Lord  Bridgnorth 
was  one  of  the  handsomest  young  men  in 
England  ;  a  leading  man  at  the  leading 
clubs,  and  indispensable  at  every  fashionable 
dinner-party;  gave  exquisite  fetes  at  an  ex- 
quisite villa,  under  the  presidency  of  the  most 
exquisite  opera-dancer  of  the  day ;  had  fought 
a  duel,  caused  a  divorce,  won  a  steeple  chase, 
ruined  a  raw  ensign  in  the  guards  at  piquet ; 
and  was  supposed  to  be  able  to  distinguish 
himself  in  public  life  any  rainy  day,  when, 
having  nothing  else  to  do,  he  should  see  fit  to 
throw  himself  away  upon  politics  ! 

Unluckily,  during  his  interim  of  fine  wea- 
ther, the  noble  roue  to  whom  ordinary  modes 
of  life  were  becoming  stale  and  unprofit- 
able, grew  bored  on  shore,  and,  like  other 
dandies  nautically  inclined,  mounted  a  yacht. 
The  result  was  disastrous.  Designing  to  pass  the 
autumn  in  the  Baltic,  Lord  Bridgnorth  and  a 


60      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

noble  friend^  who,  being  what  is  called  "  hard 
up/'  quartered  himself  on  any  one  who  was 
soft  enough  to  feed_,  lodge,  and  bear  with  his 
inanity,  landed  one  day  in  an  obscure  fishing- 
town,  on  the  coast  of  Jutland;  where,  after 
treating  themselves  with  schiedam,  they  saw 
fit  to  treat  the  natives  with  a  specimen  of  the 
Great  British  art  of  pugilism ;  till  their  Danish 
antagonists,  provoked  by  the  wantonness  of  an 
attack  which  they  little  supposed  to  be  a  scien- 
tific exhibition,  retaliated  so  much  in  earnest, 
that  the  following  day  Lord  Bridgnorth  fell  a 
victim  to  the  contusions  received  while  his 
blood  was  in  a  state  of  inflammation. 

The  heir  of  forty  thousand  a  year,  and  an 
ancient  English  peerage,  to  die  scarcely  sober, 
wholly  unattended,  in  a  Jutland  fishing-hovel ! 
The  humiliation  was  greater  almost  than  the 
affliction  ;  and  the  bereaved  father,  blind  to 
the  fact  that  his  son  had  fallen  a  victim  to  his 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      61 

own  vices,  talked  of  nothing  less  than  requiring 
from  ministers  a  demand  for  vengeance  on  the 
murderers,  and  swore  that  there  was  something 
rotten  in  the  state  of  Denmark.  It  was  not 
enough  that  his  only  son,  the  finest  young  man 
in  England,  had  been  sacrificed ;  but  the  inso- 
lent newspapers  had  taken  upon  themselves  to 
represent  the  event  in  a  series  of  pitiful  para- 
graphs, presuming  to  throw  blame  upon  Lord 
Bridgnorth,  and  leave  a  doubt  whether  his  death 
need  be  made  a  matter  of  national  warfare. 

Lord  Shropshire  was  in  fact  almost  as  angry 
as  afflicted  at  the  loss  of  his  son.  It  was  such  a 
mode  to  die  ! — such  a  waste  of  all  the  fashion, 
favour  and  popularity  enjoyed  by  the  best 
seat,  best  shot,  best  whip,  best  every  thing  in 
England  ! — such  a  cruel  want  of  consideration 
for  his  father — such  a  sinful  disregard  to  his 
position  in  life — such  an  inattention  to  the 
demands  of  his  own  consequence ! — What  busi- 


62      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

ness  had  he^  a  member  of  White's  and  the 
House  of  Commons, — a  peer  expectant,  whose 
bay  Filly  was  entered  for  the  Derby  two  years 
following,  whose  name  was  honoured  at  Coutts's, 
and  good  at  Crockford's,  to  ^^  drink,  and  speak, 
parrot,  squabble,  swagger,  swear,''  with  a  gang 
of  Holstein  skippers  ? — What  business  had  he 
at  all  yachting  in  the  Baltic  ? — Que  diahle 
allait-il  faire  dans  cette  galere  ? — 

At  length,  as  this  outbreak  of  paternal  irri- 
tability subsided,  when  the  yacht  which  had 
taken  out  the  rampant,  insolent,  fastidious, 
despotic  libertine,  brought  back  his  sense- 
less, helpless,  useless,  humiliated  remains, 
some  officious  friend  suggested  to  Lord  Shrop- 
shire —  a  circumstance  which  the  vigorous 
health  and  brilliant  promise  of  Bridgnorth  had 
hitherto  kept  out  of  view — that  the  ancient 
barony  of  Monthermer  descended  in  the  female 
line ;  and  that,  lacking  male  heirs,  the  son  of 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      63 

his  sister  Lady  Caroline,  his  sober  nephew  Sir 
William  Helmsley,  must  succeed  to  his  honours. 
The  mortified  Earl  scarcely  knew  whether  to 
be  glad  or  sorry.     The  humdrum  puritanism  of 
the  country  baronet  was  a  poor  exchange  for 
the  fine,  gay,  bold-faced  villany  of  the  fashion- 
able Bridgnorth  ;    but  he  was  better  than  no 
exchange  at  all.      Sir  William  was  a  fine  young 
man  of  eight- and-twenty,  his  son  a  fine  boy 
of  seven ;  and  this  double  shoot  to  the  all-but- 
withered  tree,  was  certainly  preferable  to  the 
utter  extinction  of  its  branches.     Five  thousand 
a-year  of  Lord  Shropshire's  rental  was  entailed 
with  the  barony.     It  began  to  appear  to  him 
an    almost  possible  thing  that  the  remaining 
thirty-five  might  find  its  way  to  little   Harry 
Helmsley,  or  his  father. 

He  was  too  wise,  however,  to  make  engage- 
ments, still  more  to  make  a  will.  Sir  William 
was  his  heir  at  law ;  and  a  will,  that  exercise  of 


64  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

posthumous    despotism    so    appalling    to   the 
nerves  of  old  gentlemen  of  sixty-five,  need  only 
be  thought  of  in  case   of  intended  exclusion. 
Who   could    say   that,   with   Bath,    Brighton, 
Cheltenham,  London  and  all  their  spinsters  in 
ambuscade  against  his  coronet.  Lord  Shropshire 
might  not  himself  be  tempted  to  marry  again  ? 
The   neighbourhood    of    Bridgnorth    Castle 
meanwhile  occupied   itself  with  the  pros  and 
cons  of  the  case,  as  earnestly  as  if  acquainted 
with  the  real  views  and  motives  of  the  parties 
interested.     All  those  who  had  been  so  deeply 
shocked   by   the   untimely  fate  of  the  young 
heir,  the  bad  because  he  was  such  a  fine  dash- 
ing fellow,  the  good  because  they  had  hoped  he 
would  survive  for  amendment,  the  indifterent 
because  there  was  a  lord  the  less  in  the  county, 
set  about  considering  the  comparative  merits  of 
Sir  William  Helmsley.     At  first,  they  had  no 
great  opinion  of  him !     Though  residing  in  an 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  65 

adjoining  county,  the  fame  of  his  hospitalities 
had  never  reached  them.  He  had  given  no 
entertainment  of  sufficient  magnitude  to  rouse 
the  remote  echoes  of  Bridgnorth  Castle;  and 
had  done  nothing  on  coming  of  age  but  settle 
an  annuity  on  his  old  nurse  and  marry  a  wife. 
This  was  a  sorry  substitute  for  one  who  had 
kept  them  in  a  ten-years^  panic  by  the  constant 
jeopardy  of  his  neck  in  fox-chases  and  his 
fortune  at  the  hazard-table. 

They  were  displeased,  too,  at  his  having 
chosen  to  go  abroad.  It  was  all  very  right  to 
grieve  for  his  wife.  But  he  was  a  responsible 
man ;  he  ought  to  have  stayed  at  home  to  take 
care  of  his  preserves,  his  county  interest,  his 
children,  servants,  tenants,  partridges  and  deer. 
The  game  would  be  destroyed  during  his 
absence ;  the  place  go  to  rack  and  ruin ;  his 
children   be    spoiled   by   their  maiden   grand- 


66      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

aunt,  and  Miss  Wroughton  be  run  away  with 
by  a  fortune-hunter. 

On  the  whole,  they  remained  true  to  their 
regrets  for  the  loss  of  Henry,  Viscount  Bridg- 
north ;  and  sincerely  hoping  that  the  old  earl 
might  be  tempted  anew  into  matrimony,  wished 
Sir  William  Helmsley  a  pleasant  journey  and  a 
profitable  winter  in  Italy.  He  was  heard  of 
from  Rome — he  was  heard  of  from  Naples ; 
for  their  parts  they  wished  to  hear  of  him  no 
more. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  67 


CHAPTER  VII. 


L'eglise  de  St.  Pierre  appartient-elle  au  Pape? — Non! 
aux  Anglais.  Je  suis  alle  dans  toute  la  candeur  de  mes 
r^ves  Catholiques,  assister  en  pelerin,  aux  offices  de  la 
semaine  sainte.  Qu'ai-je  vu  ? — Un  raout  Anglais  dans 
la  plus  belle  salle  de  I'linivers !  Le  Benedictus  tombait 
comme  un  anath^me  sur  cette  multitude  folle  et  de- 
soeuvree. 

Mery. 

\ 
Vivent  les  voyages  et  les  voyageurs  ! — England 

is  undoubtedly  the  garden  of  the  world; — its 
soil  the  most  productive, —  its  climate  the  most 
equable, — its  domestic  comfort  the  most  com- 
plete,— its  constitution  the  most  admirable, — 
its  men  the  wisest  and  bravest, — its  women  the 


6S  THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

fairest  and  most  virtuous  of  all  the  kingdoms 
outstretched  under  the  canopy  of  heaven.  And 
this  is  probably  the  reason  why^  in  approaching 
every  noticeable  city  of  the  continent^  the  first 
thing  we  meet  is  a  natty  English  groom  exer- 
cising a  fine  English  horse  ;  why,  on  entering 
the  Opera-house,  we  discover  the  best  boxes 
to  be  filled  with  people  who  talk  and  laugh 
louder  than  the  loudest  passages  of  the  or- 
chestra; why  lodgings  are  doubled  in  price 
by  the  influx  of  Great-British  visitors,  and  why, 
the  day  after  our  inauguration,  we  find  one  or 
more  cards  on  our  breakfast- table,  requesting 
the  honour  of  our  company  to  dinner  at 
seven  o^clock,  three  weeks  in  perspective. 

It  is  no  doubt  owing  to  the  irresistible  attrac- 
tion of  English,  Irish,  and  Scottish  homes, 
that  we  may  slip  into  a  colony  of  our  country- 
men at  any  baiting-place  between  Rotterdam  and 
Palermo ;  and  in  defiance  of  climate,  customs, 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


69 


and  common  sense^  enjoy  the  habits  of  London 
naturalized  among  French^  Italians^  High  Dutch 
and  Low. — Scandal,  sportsmanship,  exclusivism, 
Harvey  sauce,  and  soda  water,  have  cut  through 
or  across  the  surface  of  Europe  in  steamboats 
and  postchaises  ;  and  Mr.  Monck  Mason's 
balloon  might  have  dropped  into  almost  any 
place  but  Weilburg,  and  found  English  dowagers 
maundering  over  their  tea,  or  English  dandies 
disputing  over  their  pigeon  matches. 

Next  to  Paris,  Naples  is  perhaps  the  most 
favourite  winter  residence  of  our  countrypeople . 
At  Rome  they  miss  the  glare  and  gold  lace  of 
a  court.  They  are  fond  of  presentation  and 
representation,  galas  and  gaudiness ;  and,  at- 
tracted by  the  united  charms  of  nature  and 
art,  the  bay  the  climate  and  the  aristocratization 
of  the  Two  Sicilies,  are  usually  found  in  ample 
congregation  in  the  Neapolitan  capital. 

Nothing  too  can  be  more  welcome  than  the 


70  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

contrast  afforded  by  the  aspect  of  Naples  to  that 
of  Rome.  Rome  might  be  aptly  termed  the 
city  of  death  in  life, — Naples,  of  Hfe  in  death. 
In  the  former,  amid  the  pomps,  vanities,  and 
artificial  distinctions  of  mankind,  all  is  torpor, 
all  oblivion ; — while  in  the  latter,  though  hover- 
ing on  the  verge  of  a  volcano,  amid  buried 
cities  and  a  consuming  soil,  all  is  light,  loveli- 
ness, and  vitality. 

Not  even  the  inspirations  of  art — not  even 
the  reminiscences  of  antiquity — which  ought  to 
create  an  atmosphere  of  poetry  for  the  Eternal 
city,  avail  to  disperse  that  mal  a?ia  of  the 
mind,  whose  influence  is  more  baneful  than  the 
pestilential  vapours  of  the  Campagna.  The 
traveller  feels  transfixed  upon  the  site  of 
an  extinguished  despotism,  and  a  despotism 
about  to  be  extinguished.  Roman  emperors, 
or  Roman  pontiffs, — creatures  of  clay  aspiring 
to  the  power  of  the  divinity,  though  debased 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  7^ 

below  the  level  of  human  kind^ — have  in- 
vested the  soil  with  dishonouring  reminis- 
cences ; — and  the  roofless  Coliseum  as  the 
monument  of  the  one^  seems  to  foreshow  the 
Vatican  of  future  ages  equally  exposed  to  the 
derision  of  the  winds  of  Heaven.  Providence 
delights  in  rendering  the  wreck  of  empires 
a  mark  for  the  irony  of  posterity.  A  column 
in  the  desert,  a  pyramid  on  the  shore,  mark 
the  spots  where  human  sceptres  have  been 
brandished  m  audacious  rivalry  with  the  bolts 
of  Heaven  ; — and  the  jaundiced  Tiber,  flowing 
enviously  in  its  shrunken  channel,  will  one 
day  alone  survive  to  point  out  to  the  traveller 
hurrying  through  the  pestilential  wastes  of  the 
Campagna,  ^'  the  spot  where  Rome  once  stood, 
and  nothing  stands. '^ 

But  Naples,  the  land  of  the  Sirens,  seems  to 
have  inherited  the  spell  of  their  enchantments  i 
Around  the  natural  features  of  the  divine  Par- 


72  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

thenope,  poetry  has  enwoven  its  everlasting 
spells.  With  her  dark  blue  waters,  we  connect 
the  majestic  epithets  of  Homer  ; — and 

Sua  lieta  piaggia,  sua  solitaria  valle, 
Suo  accolto  monticel, 

are  by  the  genius  of  Virgil,  still  hallowed  in  our 
hearts. — Posilipo  and  its  myrtles, — Mergellina 
and  its  roses — present  associations  purer  than 
the  blood-stained  triumphs  of  the  Forum  or  the 
astucious  bigotry  of  the  Vatican.  It  is  in  vain 
that  the  eloquence  of  Cicero  or  grace  of  Raphael 
interpose  to  rescue  those  fated  sites  from  their 
sentence  of  condemnation  : — what  are  they 
compared  with  the  glorious  bay, — the  threaten- 
ing mountain, — whose  contrasted  smiles  and 
frowns  have  outlived  the  cities  of  successive 
ages,  and  are  still  bright  with  those  heavenly 
impulses  wliose  vigour  is  derived  from  the 
eternal  life- spring  of  the  universe  ! 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  73 

The  very  population  of  the  two  cities  appears 
to  take  its  colouring  from  their  opposite  nature. 
The  modern  Romans  are  leaden,  saturnine,  pom- 
pous, dispirited, — soulless  denizens  of  a  City 
of  the  Dead ;  the  Neapolitans,  all  fire  and  irri- 
tability,— dozing  away  half  the  day  in  the  shade, 
but  seen  throughout  the  other  half  dancing 
gaily,  almost  franticly,  in  the  sunshine, — voci- 
ferating and  gesticulating  with  an  excitability 
of  nerve  which  announces  that  their  blood  is 
lava,  and  the  clay  wherewith  they  are  fashioned 
the  burning  soil  of  the  Solfatara. 

Yet    milder    influences     are     not    wanting, 

*^  Cours, — vole  a  Naples  F'    cried  Jean  Jacques 

to  the  lovers  of  music; — and  to  the  lovers  of 

loveliness,  we  should  still  say,  "  fly  to  Naples  !" 

Fly  thither  to  thaw  the  numbness  induced  by 

the  stagnant  atmosphere  of  Rome  ;  fly  thither 

to  revel  in  a  climate 

able  to  cure  all  sadness  but  despair! — 
Even    the    sedate    Sir    William    Helmsley 

VOL.    I.  E 


74      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

was  for  some  days  overpowered  by  the  in- 
fluence of  the  place.  It  was  long  since  he 
had  felt  so  accessible  to  the  charms  of  nature, 
or  so  little  inclined  to  recede  from  the 
contact  of  society;  and  it  was  rather  as  a 
matter  of  precaution  than  of  inclination,  that 
he  repeated  to  Mr.  Wroughton  his  determina- 
tion to  submit  no  further  than  was  indispens- 
able to  the  importunities  of  the  English  co- 
teries established  at  Naples. 

As  if  an  unencumbered  man,  with  an  unen- 
cumbered estate,  had  any  right  to  the  disposal 
of  his  own  time  and  convenience  ! — The  secre- 
tary^ of  legation.  Sir  Raymond  Horton,  had 
been  Sir  William's  chum  at  Eton ;  and  various 
English  families,  settled  there  for  the  winter, 
had  divers  degrees  of  right  and  title  to  his 
civility.  The  mere  arrival  of  two  gentlemanly 
young  Englishmen,  of  whom  one  was  known  to 
be  a  bachelor,  and  the  other  a  widower,  had 
caused  the  mammas  to  glance  with  satisfaction 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  ^5 

at  their  daughters.  The  elderly  gentlemen 
trusted  the  new  comers  might  prove  whisters ; 
the  younger  ones  that  they  might  prove  bidders 
for  their  horses^  or  backers  for  their  bets.  The 
ambassador.  Lord  Portumna,  with  whom  Ge- 
rald Wroughton  was  already  acquainted,  was 
prompt  in  his  civilities;  and  in  the  course  of 
the  first  week,  every  one  possessing  the  smallest 
pretensions  to  their  acquaintance,  left  cards  for 
Wroughton  and  his  brother-in-law. 

Of  all  these  visitors,  the  most  welcome  to  the 
former,  was  his  old  friend,  Dr.  Moorsom. 

"  You  see  you  have  tempted  me  again  to 
Naples,  my  dear  doctor  !'^  cried  Gerald,  receiv- 
ing him  with  a  hearty  shake  of  the  hand.  "  It 
is  almost  worth  while  to  pass  a  few  years  in 
getting  sick  and  sorry  in  England,  for  the 
delight  of  returning  to  this  blessed  blue  sky 
and  lightsome  climate.'' 

No  symptoms  in  your  countenance  at  least 
E  2 


(( 


76  THE   WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLUr 

of  any  need  for  the  move/'  cried  Dr.  Moorsom, 
cheerfully.  "  Never  saw  you  looking  better  l 
But  I  am  too  fond  of  this  maccaroni- stewing 
town  myself^  to  be  surprised  that  others  find 
attraction  here.  Why  even  1,  scrub  as  I  am, 
instead  of  nailing  myself  down  in  England, 
as  I  ought,  to  conquer  an  independence,  must 
needs  come  sneaking  back  to  the  Chiaja  for 
a  peep  at  the  dark  blue  seas,  every  time  T  can 
manage  to  cut  across  Europe  per  favour  of 
other  people's  post-horses/' 

"  I  saw  by  the  papers  you  were  here,  which 
was  one  of  my  inducements  to  the  journey. 
You  are  with  the  St.  Pauls,  I  think  ?" 

'^  Do  you  know  them  ?" 

"  No.'' 

"  Then  you  must !—  Inoffensive  people ! — Ma- 
dame (my  patient),  a  fine  lady,  but  expiring  by 
inches  of  an  excruciating  malady — " 

"  Poor  woman !"  interrupted  Helmsley,  in  a 
tone  of  concern — " 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  77 


«c 


A  malady  beyond  reach  of  the  healing  art/^ 
continued  the  doctor; — ^^ namely,  a  whimsical 
nature,  and  fifteen  thousand  a-year  !^' 

"  You  find  Mrs.  St.  Paul  as  troublesome 
a  charge  as  you  found  me!''  said  Gerald, 
laughing.  "  But  tell  me  who  of  my  former 
acquaintances  remain  in  Naples.^' 

"  At  the  embassy,  only  Lord  Portumna  and 
Sir  Raymond. — The  two  attaches  are  new.^^ 

"  And  an  acquisition  V — 

"  Alexis  Bagot  (the  roue  Lord  Royston's 
still  more  rom  brother),  is  an  open-hearted, 
empty-headed  young  coxcomb,  not  worth  a 
guinea.  Young  Harford,  the  other,  is  a  stupid, 
self- conceited  ass,  worth  nothing  but  his  heir- 
ship-apparent  to  one  of  the  largest  fortunes  in 
England.  However,  they  add  to  the  general 
stock  of  amusement.  Lord  Portumna  is  still  a 
bachelor,  and  the  most  /e^e-giving  and  popular 
of  men.^^ 


78  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

^^  And  Prince  Guastalla }" 

"  On  the  look  out  for  an  English  heiress,  to 
enable  him  to  sweep  the  cobwebs  out  of  his 
fine  old  palace ;  while  his  sister.  Princess  Stra- 
dalla,  is  as  assiduous  as  ever  to  any  English  lord 
she  fancies  she  can  cajole  into  buying  one  of 
her  pictures/^ 

"  And  what  English  have  you  ?'^ 

"  Lady  Drummond, — the  Actons, — Gell,  and 
a  few  other  permanencies.  For  birds  of  passage, 
we  have  a  Sir  James  and  Lady  Darling,  with  a 
whole  tribe  of  Darhng  Misses,  come  to  be 
continentalized  out  of  the  rust  contracted  in  the 
wolds  of  Yorkshire ;  and  a  rich  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Longman  Tomkinson,  who  buy  their  way  into 
better  society  abroad  than  they  can  manage 
at  home.  These  are  all  who  open  their  houses. 
Let  me  see — no  ! — though  last,  far  greatest — 
there  are  Lord  Colebrooke  and  Lady  Adelaide."*" 

"  Lord     Colebrooke  V     cried    Wroughton, 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  79 

starting  up.  "  I  noticed  his  name  in  the  Hotel 
register  in  Geneva^  and  fancied  he  was  on  his 
return  to  England.^^ 

^^  No;  they  have  been  here  these  three 
weeks.^^ 

^'  Then  it  was  certainly  Lady  Adelaide  we 
passed  in  one  of  the  corridors  of  the  Char- 
treuse ! — Don^t  you  remember,  Helmsley,  see- 
ing some  people  get  into  their  carriage,  and 
our  courier  saying  it  was  a  Milor  Anglais  avec 
sa  demoiselle?'' — 

"  I  was  too  much  interested  by  the  aspect  of 
the  place  to  notice  them/'  answered  Sir  Wil- 
liam. 

"  Then  (pardon  me)  you  pronounce  your 
own  condemnation  V  cried  the  doctor,  ab- 
ruptly. "  All  the  monasteries  in  Europe, 
ruined  or  entire,  are  not  worth  a  glimpse  of 
the  noble  face  and  form  of  Lady  Adelaide  de 
VereP* 


80      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 


(C 


Still  so  enthusiastic,  my  dear  Moorsom  ?^' 
said  Gerald  Wroughton,  with  a  smile. 

^^  And  why  not  ?" — rephed  the  doctor,  "  I 
speak  as  a  connoisseur  rather  than  as  a  man. 
My  friend  Bartolini  once  commissioned  me  (in 
the  interests  of  sculpture)  to  implore  Lady 
Adelaide  to  stand  to  him  in  the  character  of  a 
muse,  for  the  benefit  of  his  atteliers,  or  rather 
for  the  benefit  of  the  tribune  ;  for  as  sure  as 
fate,  the  grand  duke  would  have  purchased 
such  a  chef  d^oeuvre  to  form  a  pendant  to 
Canova's  Venus.^^ 

'^  And  did  not  such  an  argument  persuade 
her  V — inquired  Wroughton. 

^^  Pho !  pho  ! — you,  who  know  Lady  Ade- 
laide, can  you  suppose  her  capable  of  doing 
any  thing  she  was  asked  ?  —  Her  ladyship 
would  not  hear  of  it.  Mrs.  St.  Paul, 
who  is  a  little  jealous  of  her  triumphs,  will 
have    it    that   her    ladyship's    pride    revolted 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  81 

against  the  idea  of  being  hawked  about 
in  plaster  casts,  on  the  trays  of  the  image- 
boys  I'' 

"  Do  you  know  Lady  Adelaide  ?'' — de- 
manded Sir  Wilham  of  his  brother-in-law,  hav- 
ing waited  till  the  caustic  doctor  finished  his 
sentence. 

''  It  were  presumption  to  say  yes ;  it  were 
hypocrisy  to  say  no/^  replied  Gerald.  "  I  saw 
a  good  deal  of  Lord  Colebrooke  when  I  was 
here  before.  Lady  Adelaide  noticed  me  as 
much  as  a  beautiful  woman  of  four- and- twenty 
ever  notices  a  cubling  squire  in  his  non- 
age .^^ 

'^  It  was  to  my  connexion  with  Gerald,  then/^ 
thought  Sir  William,  *^  that  I  was  indebted  for 
the  gracious  advances  of  these  people  when  I 
met  them  in  London  !'^ 

"  But  amid  all  this  gossip  and  scandaV^ 
exclaimed    the    doctor,  "  I    am  forgetting  my 

E  3 


82  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

errand,  which  was  neither  to  feel  your  pulse  nor 
backbite  our  friends.  I  am  the  bearer  of  a 
message  from  Mrs.  St.  Paul  (St.  Paul  called 
on  you  both  yesterday,  in  proper  form)  to  beg 
you  will  dine  with  them  to-day,  without  cere- 
mony and  in  boots,  that  1  may  enjoy  a  long 
talk  with  you.^' 

Sir  William  drew  up  as  Englishmen  do,  when 
startled  by  a  sudden  invitation. 

"  Don^t  refuse  V  said  the  doctor.  "  Tliey 
are  pleasant,  well-meaning  people,  who  will  do 
their  best  towards  enlivening  your  stay  at  Na- 
ples. Indeed  I  have  half  promised  that  you 
will  come.^^ 

''  With  all  my  heart,"  said  Gerald.  '^  Helms- 
ley,  you  have  no  objection  ? — " 

"  If  Mr.  and  Mrs.  St.  Paul  are  real/i/  to  be 
alone, — ''  hesitated  Sir  William. 

"  At  six  o^clock,  then,'^  said  Dr.  Moorsom, 
leaving   the   room,   and    caring   more  for  the 


THE    WOMAN    OP   THE    WORLD.  83 

acquiescence  of  his  young  friend  than  for  the 
pompous  concession  of  Helmsley. 

Alone  with  his  brother-in-law,  Sir  Wil- 
liam longed  to  question  Gerald  concerning 
his  intimacy  with  the  Colebrookes,  and  as- 
certain whether  his  previous  silence  concern- 
ing them  proceeded  from  accident  or  design. 
It  almost  occurred  to  him  to  suspect  young 
Wroughton  of  duplicity  in  his  avowed  ignorance 
of  the  sojourn  of  the  family  in  Naples;  and  to 
suppose  it  possible  that  his  eagerness  for  a 
winter  in  Italy,  might  originate  in  a  desire  to 
renew  his  acquaintance  with  a  person  so  irre- 
sistible as  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere. 

But  between  two  young  men  living  together 
on  terms  of  the  closest  intimacy,  certain  re- 
serves were  kept  up ;  and  Helmsley  felt  that 
there  would  be  indelicacy  in  forcing  the  con- 
fidence of  Wroughton  on  a  point  where  he 
might  have  motives  for  reserve.     They  were 


84      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

now  about  to  be  thrown  into  the  society  of 
Lord  Colebrooke  and  his  daughter;  and  it 
would  be  easy  for  Helmsley  to  make  his  ob- 
servations and  form  conclusions  of  his  own. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  85 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Succeeding  hours  his  former  fame  destroy, 
He  who  began  a  man — will  end,  a  boy. 

Ovid. 

The  St.  Pauls  were,  as  they  had  promised 
to  be,  alone ;  and  the  comfort  and  decency  of  a 
good  English  establishment  under  the  presi- 
dency of  an  Englishwoman  of  elegant  manners, 
was  an  agreeable  relief  to  the  travellers,  after 
the  roughness  of  Italian  magnificence  and  the 
discomfort  of  Italian  inns. 

Mr.  St.  Paul  was  a  finical  little  man,  who 
lived  only  to  endow  with  undue  importance  the 


86      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

nothingnesses  of  life : — Mrs.  St.  Paul  a  pretty 
die-away  little  woman^  assigning  importance  to 
little  beyond  her  own  convenience  and  sensa- 
tions. St.  Paul  was  overflomng  with  elegant 
classicality,  his  wife  with  the  jargon  of  valetu- 
dinarianism ;  but  Dr.  Moorsom^  by  talking  plain 
sense  for  both,  added  the  only  charm  that 
might  have  been  wanting  to  the  best  ap- 
pointed dinner-table  in  Naples. 

Sir  Wilham  Helmsley  was  of  course  fastened 
upon  by  the  host,^ — who  delighted  in  the  encoun- 
ter of  a  scholarly  Englishman,  to  whom  he 
could  exhibit  his  erudition  as  a  cicerone, — while 
Gerald  fell  to  the  share  of  the  lady ;  and  the 
dessert  was  over,  and  the  party  re-installed  in 
the  drawing-room,  before  she  had  displayed 
half  the  extent  of  her  ignorance,  in  a  learned 
exposition  of  the  philosophy  of  the  Homoeopa- 
thic system. 

Mrs.  St.  Paul  was   interrupted  in   her  last 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  87 

blunder  by  the  entrance  of  her  page  with  a 
visiting-card. 

"Do^  my  dear  doctor,  come  and  decipher 
these  pencilled  hieroglyphics  for  me/'  said  she, 
taking  it  from  the  salver. 

^^  Can  /  be  of  any  use  V  said  Gerald — per- 
ceiving that  Moorsom  was  encumbered  with 
his  cofFee-cup. 

^^ Thank  you! — Dr.  Moorsom  is  the  only 
person  of  my  acquaintance  who,  having  studied 
in  the  pyramids,  can  make  out  Lady  Adelaide 
de  Vere's  handwriting. — Well,  doctor, —  what 
does  she  say?" 

"  That,  if  you  are  alone,  she  will  drink  tea  with 
you.      Lord  Colebrooke  dines  with  the  king." 

"Am  I  to  send  an  answer?" — 

^^  My  lady  is  at  the  door  in  her  carriage,  and 
sent  up  her  card,"  interposed  the  page. 

"  Then  go  down  to  her  by  all  means,  doctor. 


88  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

and  say  I  shall  be  delighted  to  see  her/^ — cried 
Mrs.  St.  Paul,  involuntarily  adjusting  her  cap, 
and  shaking  out  the  Valenciennes  of  her  hand- 
kerchief in  anticipation  of  a  female  visitor. 

^^  I  am  enchanted  that  you  account  Helms- 
ley  and  myself  nothing,  and  announce  your- 
self alone/^  said  Gerald,  laughing ;  "  for  I  am 
impatient  to  renew  my  acquaintance  with  Lady 
Adelaide.^^ 

Meanwhile,  although  Mr.  St.  Paul,  disregard- 
ing these  frivolous  interruptions,  continued  to 
prose  on  to  Sir  William  concerning  the  last 
excavations  at  Pompeii,  Helmsley  could  no 
longer  command  his  attention.  He  felt  dis- 
pleased.— He  fancied — Heaven  knows  why, — 
that  Lady  Adelaide's  visit  had  been  precon- 
certed between  her  ladyship  and  Dr.  Moorsom  ; 
that  he  and  his  brother-in-law  had  been  ma- 
noeuvred into  dining  with  the   St.  Pauls,  and 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  89 

above  all^  betrayed  into  coming  in  boots. 
There  was  trickery,  there  was  ill-usage  in  the 
whole  business ! — 

Another  minute,  and  steps  being  audible  in 
the  adjoining  room,  Sir  William  rose  from  his 
seat  with  the  mechanical  courtesy  due  to 
the  entrance  of  a  female.  But  the  folding 
doors  were  not  thrown  open  by  the  servants. 
Dr.  Moorsom  re-entered  unannounced,  and 
alone. 

''Well?''  demanded  Mrs.  St.  Paul,  as  the 
doctor  unceremoniously  traversed  the  saloon — 
"  What  have  you  done  with  Lady  Adelaide  ?" 

''  Sent  her  home  again.^^ 

"  But  I  begged  you  to  say  we  should  be 
delighted  to  see  her  ? — " 

"  And  so  I  did, — adding  only  that  you  had 
two  English  gentlemen  with  you.  Lady  Ade- 
laide fancied  she  might  be  de  trop" 

"  You  surely  did  not  give  her  ladyship  reason 


90      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

to  imagine  her  visit  could  be  disagreeable  to 
us }" — cried  Gerald,  almost  angrily. 

^^  My  dear  sir, — make  yourself  easy ! — I  did 
nothing  that  could  compromise  your  gallantry. 
I  told  her  only  that  you  were  not  prepared  for 
company;  which  perhaps  reminded  her  that 
she  was  en  deshabille;  for  she  immediately 
ordered  her  carriage  home  again.^^ 

"  How  Enghsh  !" — cried  Mrs.  St.  Paul,  vexed 
at  her  disappointment. — "  So  much  as  Lady 
Adelaide  has  lived  on  the  continent,  not  to 
have  laid  aside  the  chain-mail  of  English  for- 
malities ?' — 

"Would  that  of  all  her  countrywomen  one 
could  say  the  same  \"  thought  the  three  single 
men  present. 

"  Our  notions  of  politeness,'^  continued 
Mrs.  St.  Paul,  pettishly, "  are  all  connected  ^^dth 
laced  buttonholes,  and  our  best  bib -and- 
tucker ! — We  never  fancv  ourselves  fine  enousfh 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  91 

to  do  honour  to  ourselves  and  our  friends." — 
Sir  William^  who  was  still  sufficiently  English 
to  blush  for  his  boots^  experienced  a  twinge  of 
conscience  at  the  charge.  Fortunately  for  his 
confusion^  Dr.  Moorsom  engaged  in  defence  of 
Lady  Adelaide.  Of  all  earthly  women^  he  said, 
she  ought  to  be  most  indifferent  to  dress ;  her 
beauty  being  of  an  order  beyond  deriving 
the  shghtest  advantage  from  such  accessories. 
^^  Her  attraction/^  observed  the  doctor,  ^^  con- 
sists in  grace,  ease,  dignity,  intelhgence.  She 
is  charming  in  the  simplest  morning  dress.^^ 

^^  And  on  horseback !"  involuntarily  added 
Sir  William,  half  apart. 

^^  True  !  Nothing  can  be  more  perfect  than 
her  seat  on  horseback !" — chimed  in  Mr.  St.  Paul. 
^^  She  reminds  me  of  an  Amazon  in  an  antique 
bas  -  relief  I  once  saw  at  Girgenti."  While 
Wroughton  could  not  refrain  from  exclaiming 
to  Helmsley,  "  You  have  seen  her,  then  ! — You 
never  told  me  that  you  had  seen  her  ?'' 


92  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Sir  William's  scarcely -audible  reply  was 
luckily  overpowered  by  the  vehemence  of  Mrs. 
St.  Paul ;  who  could  not  bear  to  hear  even  her 
friend  Lady  Adelaide  so  unnecessarily  over- 
lauded  at  the  moment  of  giving  her  oifence. 

^^  I  do  not  say  that  she  is  not  handsome  and 
clever/'  cried  the  little  beauty,  raising  her 
voice  three  semitones  above  her  valetudinarian- 
key  ; — ^^  I  only  maintain  that  she  is  a  vast  deal 
too  indifferent  to  the  opinion  of  the  world.'' 

"  The  world  indulges  in  such  a  world  of 
foolish  opinions  !"  said  Gerald,  playfully. 

^^  Lady  Adelaide  thinks  herself  privileged  to 
say  and  do  every  thing  she  pleases  !" — persisted 
the  lady. 

"  Because  she  pleases  to  say  and  do  nothing 
but  what  is  pleasing !"  vindicated  the  gentle- 
man. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon  ! — /,  for  one,  think  the 
independence  of  her  manners  any  thing  but 
pleasing." 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.      93 

^^  Yet  they  could  not  become  more  depre- 
cating without  hypocrisy/^  interposed  Dr. 
Moorsom.  "  Age  is  not  to  be  measured  by 
years.  Though  scarcely  five-and-twenty^  Lady 
Adelaide  has  been  at  the  head  of  her  father's 
house  from  the  age  of  fourteen^  doing  its 
honours  to  all  the  royalty  and  nobility  of 
Europe.  When  Lord  Colebrooke  was  ambas- 
sador at  the  Hague^  I  recollect  his  daughter 
presiding  over  his  fetes^  like  a  Heine  de  Seize 
ans,  or  rather  like  the  dueen  of  Faery  in 
person.^' 

^^  Yes,  we  all  know  that  she  is  a  woman  of 
the  world  V^ — cried  Mrs.  St.  Paul,  with  a  some- 
what tremulous  voice.  "  The  spoiled  child  of 
the  cleverest  man  and  greatest  roue  in  Europe ! 
Well ! — We  shall  see  whether  their  united 
cleverness  achieves  the  object  they  have  now 
in  view !" 

"  And   what    may   that   be  ? — To    outbkze 


94      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

Vesuvius  at  the  approaching  carnival  ?"  in- 
quired Gerald,  with  a  smile. 

"  Outblaze  ! — Oh  dear,  no. — Lady  Adelaide 
is  superior  to  display.  She  only  wants  to  catch 
Lord  Portumna.^^ 

"  My  dear  Louisa  \"  interposed  St.  Paul,  who 
was  now  turning  over  the  pages  of  a  volume  of 
Piranesi  for  the  amusement  of  Sir  William, 
unconscious  that  his  visitor's  attention  was 
very  differently  occupied. 

*^^  Is  Lord  Portumna  a  great  partie?"  inquired 
Helmsley,  addressing  the  question  generally  to 
the  circle. 

"  A  man  of  broken  fortune  and  broken 
constitution, — first-rate  abilities,  and  first-rate 
fashion  !'^  replied  Dr.  Moorsom. 

"  But  by  no  means  deeply  read, — far  from  an 
eminent  scholar  !"  rejoined  Mr.  St.  Paul.  '^  A 
well-bred  man,  certainly,  and  admirably  fitted 
for  his  vocation  ;  but  one  soon  grows  weary  of 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  95 

his  society.  One  derives  no  information  from 
him." 

"  Admirably  fitted  indeed^  then^  for  his 
diplomatic  vocation  !" — cried  Gerald.  "  I  am 
no  longer  surprised  that  Lord  Colebrooke, 
who,  on  the  next  change  of  ministry,  is  likely 
to  enter  the  cabinet,  should  estimate  the  value 
of  such  a  son-in-law  !" 

'^  Yes,  one  often  hears  that  Lord  Colebrooke 
is  likely  to  be  made  premier,  or  that  he  is 
going  to  form  a  ministry,"  said  Mrs.  St.  Paul, 
still  unforgiving  ;  '^  but,  somehow  or  other,  the 
day  never  arrives." 

"  Shall  I  teU  you  why  ?"  demanded  Dr. 
Moorsom.  ^^  Lady  Adelaide  has  taken  it  into 
her  head  that  her  father  is  not  equal  to  the 
fatigues  of  office ;  and  insisted  on  bringing  him 
abroad,  a  few  months  ago,  as  a  plea  for  the 
rejection  of  overtures  of  the  most  flattering 
description." 


96      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

"  I  suppose  she  cared  more  for  Lord  Por- 
tumna  than  for  Downing  Street  \"  said  Mrs. 
St.  Paul. 

'^  She  cared  more  for  her  father  than  either !" 
cried  the  doctor.  "  Let  us  be  just ! — Lady 
Adelaide  shall  be  ugly,  if  you  please, — vain,  if 
you  please, — frivolous,  if  you  please — artificial, 
if  you  please ;  but  she  has  given  fatal  and 
irrefragable  proof  that  she  is  the  best  daughter 
in  the  world !" 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  97 


CHAPTER  IX. 


L'univers,  mon  ami,  ne  pense  point  a  toi ; 
L'avenir  encore  moins  ;  conduis  bien  ton  menage, 
Divertis-toi,  bois,  dors,  sois  tranquille,  sois  sage. 

Voltaire. 

Sir  William  Helmsley  did  not  easily 
lose  his  susceptibility  to  the  charm  of  the  most 
delightful  climate  and  most  vivacious  city  of 
Europe.  The  din, — the  movement,  the  many- 
coloured  complexions  of  Naples,  had  roused  him 
to  a  new  sense  of  existence,  —  the  elasticity 
of  the  atmosphere  soothed  him  to  a  more  ex- 

VOL.    I.  F 


98      THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

quisite; — ^he  felt  fuller  of  life  and  spirits  than 
he  had  fancied  he  should  ever  feel  again. 

The  instincts  of  the  scholar  and  artist  were 
called  forth;  and  while  Gerald  was  renewing 
his  intimacies  with  card-playing  Duchesses 
and  medal-hunting  prelates^  Helmsley  was 
sketching  the  picturesque  spinstresses  who  ply 
their  distaffs  on  the  Chiaja,  or  plucking  a  leaf 
of  laurel  beside  the  tomb  of  Virgil.  So  rapidly 
had  the  advanced  season  of  their  journey  com- 
pelled them  to  traverse  Italy,  that  his  attention 
was  not  overwearied  by  the  multiplicity  of 
sites  and  monuments  which  exhaust  the  sym- 
pathy of  more  deliberate  travellers:  Florence, 
Bologna,  Rome,  had  done  little  more  than 
stimulate  his  curiosity  for  the  admiration  of 
new  wonders.  He  had  none  of  the  indifference 
of  those  who,  beholding  in  Naples  only  its 
charms  of  site  and  classical  association,  pro- 
nounce that  it  contains  scarcely  an  object 
deserving  the  attention  of  a  dilettante. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  99 

The  two  brothers  tacitly  agreed  to  be  no 
restraint  on  each  other^s  movements.  For  all 
that  was  new  to  Helmsley,  was  stale  and  un- 
profitable to  Gerald  ;    all  that  was  attractive  in 

the  eyes  of  a  young  man  of  three-and-twenty, 
was  frivolous  and  vexatious  to  Sir  William ; 
and  as  Mr.  St.  Paul  was  only  too  happy  in  the 
duties  of  ciceroneship,  the  few  expeditions 
where  an  experienced  companion  is  an  ad- 
vantage, were  undertaken  by  Helmsley  under 
his  learned  auspices.  For  the  twenty-seventh 
time  in  his  Neapolitan  life,  St.  Paul  visited 
Pompeii,  in  order  to  favour  the  Northampton- 
shire baronet  with  his  notes  explanatory ; — 
with  theories  of  his  own  invention  and  facts  the 

invention  of  the  hireling  guides  of  the  place. 

On  returning  home,  from  one  of  these  clas- 
sical expeditions.  Sir  WiUiam  learned  from  his 
brother  that  he  had  been  riding  with  Lord 
Colebrook  and  his  daughter  on  the   Posilipo 

F  2 


100  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

road,  and  had  promised  to  join  them  that  even- 
ing in  their  box  at  St.  Carlos. 

"  I  met  Moorsom,  too  ;"  added  Gerald^  "  and 
knowing  that  you  were  to  be  alone  and  that 
the  St.  Pauls  would  not  miss  Pasta  in  the  Semi- 
ramide,  persuaded  him  to  come  and  spend  the 
evening  with  you." 

^^  Thank  you  !" — replied  Sir  William,  with  a 
short  dry  cough.  He  could  not  help  feeling 
that  his  brother  had  all  the  advantages  on  his 
side; — Rossini,  Pasta,  the  cleverest  man  in 
Europe,  and  Lady  Adelaide  De  Vere,  against 
a  doctor  of  physic  and  a  cup  of  ill-brewed 
Bohea.  !  But  Gerald,  aware  that  Sir  William 
had  not  entered  any  place  of  public  amusement 
since  the  loss  of  his  wife,  fancied  there  would 
be  indelicacy  in  proposing  to  him  a  visit  to 
the  opera.  More  than  once,  suggestions  of 
a  similar  nature  had  been  received  by  Helrasley 
with   an   outburst   of    wounded   feeling ;    and 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  101 

there  was  no  reason  for  supposing  a  moral 
revolution  to  have  been  effected  in  his  mind^  by 
a  fortnight's  sojourn  in  Naples. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  be  under  the  necessity  of 
excusing  myself  to  Dr.  Moorsom/'  added  Sir 
William^  at  length ;  "  but  I  must  have  this 
evening  to  myself.  I  have  only  written  a  few 
hurried  lines  to  Emma  since  we  arrived  here  ; 
and  unless  I  mark  by  somewhat  more  than  a 
word  or  two  of  thanks  my  gratitude  for  her 
kind  details  concerning  the  children,  I  can- 
not hope  she  will  continue  to  favour  me.^^ 

"  True  ! — To-morrow  is  the  day  for  the 
courier/'  observed  Gerald,  carelessly,  on  other 
thoughts  intent.  ^^  I  wiU  leave  word,  then, 
on  my  way,  for  Moorsom  not  to  interrupt  you. 
Give  my  love  to  Emma  and  Aunt  Margaret, 
and  tell  them  I  will  write  next  week.'^ 

On  returning  that  night  from  the  opera, 
Wroughton    noticed   in    his    brother-in-law's 


102  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

countenance^    an    expression  of   pique.     The 
transition    is    a  trying   one   from   a   crowded 
theatre^   blazing   with  light   and  buzzing  with 
enthusiasm^    to   the   dull   chamber   at    home, 
where,  by  the  light  of  two  melancholy  candles 
or   a   solitary  lamp,  sits  the  studious,  home- 
staying   friend.      There  should    be   great   so- 
briety  on    the    part    of   the    world -haunting 
individual,   or   great   natural   cheerfulness    on 
that  of   the    world-avoiding,    to    bring   them 
tolerably  on  a  par.    Unluckily,  Sir  William  was 
dispirited  by  the  associations  called  up  by  his 
letters  to  Wroughton  Hall ;  and  Gerald  elated, 
as  became  his  age,  by  the   recent  contact  of 
youth  and   beauty,   wit  and   animation.      He 
entered  the  dull  room  with  a  smiling  and  glow- 
ing face;  and  was  about  to  expand  into  raptures 
concerning    Pasta   and   Lady  Adelaide,   when 
he    was   checked   by   the   cold   taciturnity   of 
Helmsley. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  103 

"  This  will  not  do  ?'  thought  the  good- 
natured  Wroughton^  retiring  to  rest.  "  I  must 
not  allow  this  poor  fellow's  hypochondriacism 
to  become  habitual.  Lord  Colebrooke  is  all 
friendliness.  I  will  ask  the  favour  of  him  to  call 
here  to-morrow,  and  include  Sir  William  in  the 
invitation  I  have  accepted  to  dine  at  the 
Palazzo  Balbi.  There  will  be  no  possibility  of 
refusing,  when  asked  in  that  sort  of  ofF-hand 
viva  voce  manner. 

The  plan  was  successful .  Lord  Cole- 
brooke seemed  to  enter  fully  into  Gerald's 
feeings  and  Sir  William's  repugnances ;  and 
performed  his  part  in  the  little  drama  with  so 
much  apparent  naivete  and  real  good  breeding, 
that  "  no/^  under  any  possible  modification, 
was  unpronounceable.  As  he  dressed  for  the 
party,  Helmsley  satisfied  his  conscience  for 
the  pleasure  the  prospect  afforded  him,  by 
assuring  himself  that  his  only  object  in  the 


104     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

visit  was  to  form  some  conclusion  respecting 
Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere,  as  regarded  the  atten- 
tions of  young  Wroughton. 

Lord    Colebrooke    had    said   nothing   of    a 

^'  party/^  because  to  him  the  crowds  of  society 
were  habitual;  he  would  only  have  felt  it 
necessary  to  apologize,  had  there  been  but 
himself  and  his  daughter  to  assist  his  two 
guests  in  bearing  onwards  on  their  shoulders 
the  burden  of  the  passing  time.  Such  was 
not,  such  had  never  been,  the  tenour  of  his 
existence.  His  father,  a  cabinet  minister, — his 
mother,  an  accredited  beauty  of  the  last  reign, 
— his  lordship's  youth  had  progressed  from  the 
mobs  of  a  fashionable  season,  to  the  Uvely 
circles  of  Colebrooke  Castle  or  Woodland's 
Lodge,  overflowing,  from  the  close  of  the  ses- 
sion to  its  recommencement,  with  a  succession  of 
illustrious  guests.  An  occasional  excursion  to 
the  continent,  that  is  to  Spa  or  Baden,  Paris 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  105 

or  Naples,  filled  up  the  measure  of  existence 
both  for  the  old  lord  and  the  new.  They 
were  creatures  of  the  community  ;  their  notions 
of  domestic  life  consisted  in  the  seclusion 
which  is  surrounded  by  a  score  or  two  of  ser- 
vants, and  a  dozen  or  two  of  guests. 

Such  were,  of  course,  the  habits  which  Lady 
Adelaide  had  witnessed  from  her  birth.  The 
spoiled  child  of  fashionable  parents,  she  had 
been  brought  up  at  her  father's  knee ;  a  play- 
thing to  wits  out  of  season,  and  statesmen  out 
of  place, — mimicking  the  airs  of  beauties,  and 
the  grimaces  of  coquettes.  From  her  earliest 
age,  she  had  heard  things  freely  talked  of 
which,  in  less  distinguished  circles  are  discussed 
only  in  a  whisper.  There  was  no  pause  for 
the  growth  of  delicate  sentiments;  no  silence 
for  the  development  of  gentle  reflections.  Like 
foreigners  of  every  class,  English  people  of 
fashion  have  a  habit  of  wearing  their  hearts  on 

F  3 


106  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

their  sleeve^  till  they  become  hardened  by  ex- 
posure ;  and  opening  the  budget  of  their 
opinions  for  the  advantage  of  all  and  sundry, 
till  not  a  charm  of  mind  remains  to  be  dedi- 
cated pure  and  undefiled  to  the  sacred  sym- 
pathy of  a  friend. 

Of  all  this,  Helmsley  knew  only  that  Lord 
Colebrooke,  as  one  of  the  early  boon  companions 
of  his  uncle,  shared  in  the  worldliness  of  Lord 
Shropshire's  ways  and  sentiments.  He  was 
aware  also  that  Marcella  had  declined  a 
presentation  to  Lady  Adelaide;  but  nothing 
wherefore.  The  Colebrookes  were  confessedly 
continentalized  in  their  modes  of  life ;  and  his 
departed  angel  might  perhaps  have  dreaded 
to  expose  to  such  contact,  the  almost  cloistral 
sanctity  of  her  opinions.  But  though  Mar- 
cella was  a  being  apart  from  her  sex,  and  high 
above  competition,  Lady  Adelaide  might  have 
claims  to  an  average  portion  of  its  excellences. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  107 

She  might  be  as  good  as  the  generality  of 
women;  nay,  might  be  a  very  charming  wo- 
man, and  still  remain  immeasurably  below  his 
standard  of  perfection. 

Such  were  his  cogitations  on  his  way  to  the 
stately  apartments  of  the  Palazzo  Balbi  in  the 
Largo  di  Castello,  inhabited  by  the  earl;  but 
when,  the  doors  of  the  saloon  being  thrown 
open,  the  buzz  and  laughter  of  a  crowded  room 
burst  upon  the  startled  ear  so  long  habituated  to 
seclusion,  Helmsley  felt  himself  betrayed  into 
a  pit-fall.  The  party,  as  parties  generally  are, 
became  hushed  into  the  silence  of  examination, 
while  Sir  William  was  going  through  his  com- 
pliments to  Lord  Colebrooke,  and  presentation 
to  Lord  Colebrooke^s  daughter ;  and  a  single 
glance  round  the  room  showed  that  the  circle 
was  composed  of  strange  faces.  He  had  hoped 
to  meet  his  friend  Sir  Raymond  Horton ;  but 
not  a  creature  present  had  poor  Helmsley  ever 
beheld  before. 


108     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

Of  Gerald,  indeed,  they  were  mostly  old 
acquaintances ;  and  as  Mr.  Wroughton  quietly 
glided  round  the  circle  with  a  bow  to  one,  a 
shake  of  the  hand  with  another,  and  a  finger 
extended  to  a  third,  in  answer  to  their  "  How 
are  you?^^  or  ^'  Comment  ga  vaV  he  felt  almost 
envious  of  the  ease  and  popularity  of  his  bro- 
ther-in-law. But  neither  before,  nor  at,  nor 
after  dinner,  did  Gerald  address  more  than  a 
profound  bow  to  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere,  who 
was  the  only  lady  of  the  party ;  nor  did  it  need 
a  star  and  green  ribbon  to  acquaint  Sir  Wil- 
liam that  the  somewhat  faded  looking  man  who 
occupied  the  nearest  station  to  her  chair,  was 
no  other  than  Lord  Portumna.  This  accounted 
for  his  friend,  Sir  Raymond^s  absence.  Excel- 
lencies seldom  like  to  be  kept  in  check  by  the 
presence  of  their  perpetual  blister  or  secretary 
of  legation. 

The  dinner  was  good,  the  party  agreeable. 
An  incessant  chatter  of  conversation  was  kept 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  109 

up,  overpowering  to  the  saturnine  Englishness 
of  Sir  William's  nature;  and  the  vehement 
gesticulation  and  grotesque  play  of  countenance 
of  four  or  five  Italians  among  the  guests, 
struck  him  as  the  grimace  of  mountebanks : 
— his  Great  British  composure,  being  still  un- 
prepared for  the  ardour  of  "  souls  made  of 
fire  and  children  of  the  sun." 

He  was  surprised  to  observe  the  eagerness 
with  which  Wroughton  entered  into  discussion 
with  these  people,  on  trifling  points  of  general 
interest  in  society,  but  of  no  account  to  those 
who  weigh  and  measure  the  trivialities  of  life 
with  a  too  mathematical  precision.  But  pre- 
sently, amid  the  discordant  jar  of  a  dozen  male 
voices,  his  ear  was  struck  by  the  silvery  accents 
of  a  female ;  and,  one  by  one,  all  became  silent 
to  attend  to  the  singularly-musical  enunciation 
of  Lady  Adelaide.  She  spoke  French,  as  the 
language  generally  familiar  to  her  guests  ;  and 


110  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

of  music,  as  the  topic  universally  acceptable ; 
and  Helmsley  was  forced  to  admit  that  it  was 
impossible  to  talk  better,  with  less  pretension, 
or  more  judgment.  She  seemed  to  understand 
the  science  as  thoroughly  as  she  felt  the  charm 
of  ^^  the  only  sensual  pleasure  without  vice ','' 
her  very  voice  and  intonation  being  formed 
by  nature  to  discourse  eloquent  music  about 
music. 

'^  Were  she  in  the  wrong,  I  should  fancy  her 
right,  while  she  delivered  herself  so  gracefully  V 
observed  Prince  Ottavio  Sforza,  who  sat  beside 
Sir  Wilham  and  noticed  the  approving  ex- 
pression of  his  countenance.  "  But  she  is  right, 
— logically  and  practically  right ;  your  country- 
woman, sir,  is  the  finest  musician  in  all  Italy." 

Lord  Portumna  was  the  only  person  who 
ventured  to  oppose  the  theories  propounded 
by  Lady  Adelaide ;  not  by  argument,  but  by 
the  most  caustic  and  polished  irony.     Scorning 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  Ill 

to  admit  the  ascendancy  of  either  reason  or 
sentiment,  he  attacked  his  fair  friend  with 
playful  witticisms  incomprehensible  to  his 
Italian  auditors,  and  evoking  only  the  applause 
of  Mr.  Harford,  the  chief  duty  of  whose  diplo- 
matic vocation  as  junior  attache  consisted  in 
furnishing  an  echo  to  his  chef.  Helmsley  was 
delighted  with  the  mildness  and  temper  with 
which  Lady  Adelaide,  unmoved  by  these  idle 
tokens  of  her  defeat,  tried  to  convince,  as  long 
as  there  appeared  a  gleam  of  candour  in  Lord 
Portumna;  and  became  patiently  silent,  the 
moment  she  found  her  efforts  parried  by  buf- 
foonery. Her  very  mode  of  diverting  the  con- 
versation into  another  channel,  was  a  triumph 
of  good  breeding ;  and  Sir  William  felt  that  he 
had  never  beheld  an  Englishwoman  whose 
manners  were  so  perfectly  conciliating. 

For    on    that  point.    Englishwomen    must 
be  allowed  to  fail.     They  are   too  much  the 


112  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

creatures  of  impulse  and  too  little  of  actresses,  to 
subdue  their  movements  to  the  happy  medium 
of  good  taste.  They  are  either  shy,  and  attempt 

to  conceal  it  under  reserve  and  hauteur ;  or  apt 
through  excessive  vivacity  to  degenerate  into 
abruptness.  With  rare  exceptions,  their  ad- 
dress is  destitute  of  grace  ;  and  their  intended 
civilities  might  often  be  mistaken  for  an  afiront. 
But  in  Lord  Colebrooke^s  daughter,  all  appeared 
spontaneous  as  it  was  ingratiating.  If  there 
were  art  in  the  business,  she  had  art  enough 
to  conceal  it. 

The  whole  party  moved  together  to  the 
drawing-room  to  take  coflPee ;  and  after  it  was 
served.  Sir  William  was  vexed  to  perceive  that 
nothing  remained  but  to  make  a  parting  bow. 
He  had  intended  to  draw  nearer  to  the  enchant- 
ress, and  hazard  an  attempt  towards  the  im- 
provement of  his  acquaintance  with  Lord  Cole- 
brooke.     But  the  party  was  already  broken  up ; 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  113 

each  was  hastening  to  his  evening's  amusement. 
Helmsley  had  dedined  the  proposition  of 
Prince  Ottavio  to  present  him  at  the  conver- 
sazione of  his  sister^  the  Duchess  d'Asti,  where 
he  now  found  that  Gerald  and  the  majority  of 
his  companions  were  proceeding  ;  and  arrived 
at  home, — at  his  dull  solitary  home, — he  had 
nothing  to  occupy  him  but  the  consciousness 
of  having  been  a  dead  letter  in  a  brilliant 
society  ; — and  the  certainty  that  he  should  be 
set  down  by  the  Colebrookes  as  a  dull,  silent, 
impracticable  Englishman, — not  worth  the 
trouble  of  a  second  attempt  to  include  in  the 
gay  and  enlightened  circle  of  their  hospitality. 
^^  After  all,"  —  mused  the  country  baronet, 
trying  to  justify  to  himself  the  failing  of  which 
he  was  only  too  painfully  conscious, — '^  is  it 
worth  while  to  unfold  one^s  opinions  and  senti- 
ments, for  the  amusement  of  a  set  of  people  one 
sees  for  the  first  time,  and  may  never  behold 


114  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

again  ? — Certainly  not !  It  is  necessary  to  me  to 
entertain  some  esteem  for  a  man,  before  I  admit 
him  into  my  confidence/^ 

Sir  William  did  not  perceive  that  certain 
qualifications  must  pre-exist  to  render  a  man 
agreeable  in  society ;  either  that  want  of  sym- 
pathy with  any  particular  person  which  produces 
a  congeniality  of  feeling  with  all  the  world  ;  or 
that  warm  sympathy  with  a  particular  person, 
inducing  a  desire  to  shine  in  their  eyes  by 
universal  popularity.  Neither  of  these  causes 
at  present  stirred  him  out  of  his  habitual  apathy. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  115 


CHAPTER  X. 


Corsaires  a  corsaires, 

L'un  I'autre  s'attaquant,  ne  font  pas  leurs  affaires. 

La  Fontaine. 

The  following  morning  when  he  entered  the 
breakfast-room,  a  fashionable  looking  young 
EngHshman  was  sitting  with  Gerald,  whom 
nothing  but  Wroughton's  introduction  as  '^  Mr. 
Bagot,"  could  have  induced  Helmsley  to  sup- 
pose a  new  acquaintance  formed  at  the  party 
of  the  preceding  night.  Since  their  arrival, 
Alexis  the  Great  had  been  on  a  par  tie  de  chasse 
with  Prince  Guastalla,  in  Calabria ;  but  he  was 


116     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

evidently  disposed  to  make  up  for  lost  time  in 
improving  an  intimacy  with  the  new-comers. 

"  How  do  you  mean  to  amuse  yourself 
through  the  winter  ?"  he  inquired  of  Wrough- 
ton,  as  soon  as  the  ceremonies  of  introduction 
to  his  brother-in-law  were  concluded.  ^'You 
were  here  two  years  ago,  I  think  ? — There  was 
a  better  set  of  people,  then.  At  present  (with 
the  exception  of  Lady  Wycombe  and  her 
cUque),  I  never  saw  worse  company  \" 

^^I  do  not  know  Lady  Wycombe/^  said 
Wroughton,  carelessly. 

"Not  knoio  Lady  Wycombe? — Why,  my  dear 
fellow,  where  the  deuce — a—  a — a — I  mean  'tis 
an  unlucky  thing  that  you  should  not ;  for  it 
is  her  rule  to  make  no  English  acquaintances 
on  the  continent.  And  after  aU  it  is  a  highly 
necessary  regulation  ; — for  every  EngUsh  person 
in  a  certain  set  has  the  entrte  of  her  house  in 
London.^' 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  Il7 

"  A  proof  that  I  do  not  belong  to  what  you 
call  a  certain  set.  T  told  you  last  night/^  said 
Gerald,  laughing,  '^  that  I  was  but  a  country 
squire  V' 

"  Yes,  yes. — But  no  one  intends  to  remain  a 
country  squire.  You  don^t  suppose  that  I  mean 
to  live  and  die  a  dirty  attache,  copying  lordly 
crinkum-crankum  into  legible  text,  and  com- 
pressing circumbendibus  periods  into  intelli- 
gible English  ? — Have  you  been  presented  to 
Madame  de  Hardenstein,  the  Austrian  ambas- 
sadress ?" 

"  No.'' 

''  Nor  to  the  charming  Madame  de  la  Chu- 
chotterie  V^ 

'^  The  French  ambassadress  ? — No.'' 

"  Why,  my  dear  fellow,  where  have  you — 
a — a— a — with  whom  then  are  you  faujile  in 
Naples  ?"— 

"  With  your  friend  Guastalla — with  Ottavio 
Sforza— with  the  Duchess  d'Asti." 


118     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

^^  But  no  English  ? — so  much  the  better/' 

^^  We  dined  the  other  day  with  the  St.  Pauls/' 
said  Sir  William,  manfully,  not  choosing  to 
eat  his  cutlet  in  utter  silence. 

"  The  St.  Pauls  ?— Oh  !  my  God  !''— cried 
Bagot,  with  an  air  of  ineffable  disgust :  "  What 
could  induce  you  to  confront  the  vapour  of 
that  woman's  ether,  or  the  weight  of  that 
fellow's  pedantry? — But  I  forgot — you  have 
your  apology! — St.  Paul's  chef  is  really  one  of 
the  first  artistes  in  Naples,  and  for  the  sake  of 
his  entrees  one  may  put  up  with  those  of  his 
fortunate  owners ;  particularly  if  you  manage  to 
sit  next  old  Moorsom,  who  is  a  capital  fellow ; 
— helps  one's  digestion  like  a  glass  of  crusty 
port!- — I  have  the  greatest  regard  for  Moorsom. 
— Whereabouts  have  you  got  your  box  ?" 

Sir  William  did  not  exactly  comprehend  the 
transition. 

"  We  have  none,'"  replied  Gerald.  "  Sir 
WiUiam  is  not  particularly  fond  of  music,  or 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.     119 

I  should  have  indulged  myself.     I  must  look 
out  for  a  stall.^^ 

^^  Do   not    let   my   disinclination    be    any 
obstacle^^^  said  Helmsley,  making  a  desperate 
effort.    "  I  do  not  intend  to  miss  Pasta  while 
I  am  here.     I  shall  be  happy  to  join  you  in- 
a  box.^^ 

^^  Then  I  recommend  you  to  engage  the 
one  next  Colebrooke^s,  which  was  bespoken  for 
Lady  Mary  Mitchell,  who  has  made  up  her 
mind  to  pass  the  winter  at  Home.  Shall  I 
speak  to  Tavarini  for  you  ? — I  believe  it  is  still 
to  be  had.  I  wanted  Portumna  to  take  it. 
But  when  bachelor  ambassadors  come  to  his 
lordship^s  wiggy  time  of  life,  they  do  not  like 
to  bring  their  attaches  into  contact  with  their 
courtships.^^ 

'^  Lord  Portumna,  then,  is  really  papng  his 
addresses  to  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere  V—  de- 
manded Sir  William,  fancying  Gerald  might 
not  like  to  push  the  inquiry. 


120     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 


(( 


Paying  his  addresses  ?'^ — exclaimed  Alexis 
Bagot^  throwing  down  the  stand  of  arms  he  had 
been  making  on  the  breakfast-table  with  its 
supernumerary  spoons  and  forks.  "  Paying ! 
— How  I  hate  that  expression  I — It  reminds 
one  of  every  thing  that  is  detestable ; — debt 
— visits — grudges — " 

^'  Would  you  have  had  me  inquire  whether 
he  was  making  love  to  her  ladyship }'' — cried 
Gerald  banteringly,  half  afraid  that  Helms- 
ley  might  not  take  such  coarse  pleasantry  in 
good  part. 

^^  Making  love  to  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere  I — 
As  if  the  love  of  such  women  was  not  to  be 
had  ready  made !  '^ 

^^  Lady  Adelaide  is  a  great  favourite  of  mine ; 
I  have  a  sincere  regard  for  her^"  said  Wrough- 
ton,  more  gravely. 

"  So  have  I ! — I  am  in  love  with  her  myself 
for  a  day  or  two,  every  time  we  meet  after 
a  year's  absence.     But  as  to  feeling  respect  for 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  121 

a  woman  who — but  no  matter  ! — I  did  not  come 
hither  to  talk  scandal ;  but  to  inquire,  in  Lord 
Portumna^s  name,  when  you  intend  to  be  pre- 
sented ?" 

"  I  have  been  presented.  I  shall  go  to  court 
on  Monday  next ; — and  if  I  can  prevail  on 
Helmsley  to — '^ 

'^  I  had  just  despatched  a  note  on  the  subject 
to  Lord  Portumna/^  said  Sir  WiUiam,  calmly ; 
and  while  he  proceeded  to  make  his  arrangements 
with  the  nonchalant  attache,  Gerald  indulged  in 
silent  wonder  at  the  change  which  a  couple  of 
days  had  effected  in  the  views  of  his  brother- 
in-law.  It  was  not  for  him,  however,  to  check 
so  happy  a  transformation  by  any  token  of  sur- 
prise. Pleased  that  his  winter  was  likely  to  be 
a  pleasanter  one  than  he  had  anticipated.  He 
resolved  to  make  all  haste  to  secure  the  box  at 
St.  Carlos,  and  get  the  name  of  Sir  William  in- 
cluded in  his  invitations. 

VOL.    I.  G 


122     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

The  opera-box^  however,  was  disposed  of; — 
Mrs.  Longman  Tompkinson,  attracted  by  the 
prospect  of  a  station  next  to  the  most  fashion- 
able woman  in  Naples,  had  secured  it  at  a  high 
premium.  Nor  did  Gerald  regret  the  loss. 
Another  was  easily  obtained,  from  which  his 
own  visits  to  Lady  Adelaide  were  less  imme- 
diately under  the  inspection  of  his  grave  bro- 
ther-in-law. If  Portumna  dreaded  the  approxi- 
mation of  his  attache's  jetty  curls,  Wroughton 
might  not  have  been  altogether  easy  under  the 
inquiring  eye  of  Helmsley. 

Meanwhile  Sir  William — his  deputy  lieu- 
tenant's uniform  duly  prepared,  his  horses 
properly  appointed,  and  his  various  introduc- 
tions effected, — was  surprised  to  find  that,  after 
the  first  effort  of  a  launch,  his  course  over  the 
untroubled  waters  of  pleasure  was  a  smooth 
one.  Nothing  is  more  amazing  to  little  people 
than  the  discovery  of  their  own  insignificance. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  123 

So  long  accustomed  in  Northamptonshire  to 
find  his  comings  and  goings^ — his  finger-aches 

and  heart-aches^ — a  matter  of  moment  to  the 
infinitesimal  sphere  of  a  country  neighbour- 
hood, it  surprised  him  to  observe  that  not  a 
soul  in  Naples  was  surprised  at  his  return  to 
the  social  world.  After  the  first  mortification, 
he  began  to  congratulate  himself  on  the  fact; 
and  to  feel  that  independence  is  sometimes 
prefeiable  to  dignity.  Dr.  Moorsom,  indeed, 
clapped  him  somewhat  roughly  on  the  shoulder 
while  congratulating  him  on  his  amended  health 
and  spirits ;  but  not  another  creature,  not  even 
the  minutious  Mr.  St.  Paul,  noticed  that  he  had 
ever  held  back  from  company  and  was  now 
among  the  foremost  in  the  vortex. 

The  carnival  was  beginning.  There  were  balls, 
royal,  diplomatic,  foreign,  or  English,  every 
night,  and  even  some  mornings  of  the  week ;  in 
spite  of  which,  St.  Carlos,  the  Accademia,  anda 

g2 


124     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

variety  of  weekly  conversazioni,  held  on  the 
monotonous  tenour  of  their  way.  Not  a 
moment^s  leisure  for  recoil  or  reflection  ! — All 
was  mirth,  gaiety,  music,  feasting,  dancing. — 
Helmsley  and  his  brother-in-law  rarely  enjoyed 
more  than  an  hour's  tete-a-tete. 

That  lovely  queen  of  Naples,  now  departed, 
forgotten,  and  replaced,  was  then  in  the  zenith 
of  her  beauty  and  popularity  ;  and  among  the 
foreign  ladies  especially  favoured  by  her  notice, 
were  Lady  Wycombe  and  Lady  Adelaide  de 
Vere.  But  it  was  only  when  sunning  them- 
selves in  the  royal  smile,  that  they  suffered 
themselves  to  be  brought  into  contact.  There 
was  war,  not  ouverte  but  converte,  between  the 
fair  countrywomen  : — Lady  Wycombe  being  a 
strictly  English  Englishwoman  of  fashion, 
armed  to  the  teeth  with  the  exceptiousness 
and  high-tory  exclusivism  of  London  Dnrch- 
lauchtigkeit ;  Lady  Adelaide,  a  continentalized 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  125 

Englishwoman  of  fashion^  rigid  in  her  prin- 
ciples of  taste  and  toilet,  but  lax  in  the 
punctilio  and  etiquette  of  minor  morals. 
Lady  Adelaide  chose  to  associate  with  any  one 
who  pleased  her ;  Lady  Wycombe  scorned  to 
be  pleased  by  any  one  not  legitimately  privi- 
leged to  be  pleasing. 

The  two  ladies,  young  handsome  and  inde- 
pendent, might  perhaps  have  enjoyed  their 
mutual  detestation  undisturbed,  till  for  want 
of  opposition  it  exhausted  itself  to  extinction, 
but  for  the  efforts  of  the  idle  and  frivolous  by 
whom  they  were  surrounded.  Not  the  Italians ; 
— the  Italians  are  too  indolent  to  trouble 
themselves  with  fomenting  other  people^s 
discords;  more  especially  the  Neapolitans, 
who,  steeped  in  the  sensual  enjoyment  of  the 
most  delicious  of  climates,  have  no  genius  for 
tracasserie.  But  the  English,  wherever  they 
colonize,   beget  factions.      The   women   more 


126  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

especially,  delight  in  a  petty  feud  :  and  the 
first -thing  sure  to  be  confided  to  one  on  joining 
a  society  of  fellow-country  people  on  the  conti- 
nent, is  a  tale  of  scandal  or  a  disreputable 
accusation. 

There  was,  in  the  first  place,  Mrs.  St.  Paul ; 
who,  like  the  bat  in  the  fable,  fought  alternately 
on  both  sides ;  and  occupied  her  idle  morn- 
ings in  cariying  from  one  party  to  the  other, 
hints,  sneers,  and  misrepresentations ;  with  all 
her  little  douilletterie  of  a  valetudinarian  and 
scarcely  audible  voice,  continuing  to  deal 
sledge-hammer  blows  upon  the  self-love  of 
both  her  bosom  friends. 

Then  came  Mrs.  Longman  Tompkinson, 
conscious  that  the  most  golden  of  her  gold 
would  be  insufficient  to  gild  over  in  the  sight 
of  the  high  and  mighty  countess,  the  looms 
rom  which  Mr.  Longman  Tompkinson  of 
Stoke  Park,  derived  his  mansions  in  Bucking- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  12? 

hamshire  and  Carlton  Terrace,  his  plate,  equi- 
pages, parliamentary  interest  and  promise  of  a 
baronetcy :  but  trusting  that  the  excellence  of 
her  professional  concerts  might  bribe  the  pre- 
sence of  the  dilettante  Colebrookes,  and  the 
glitter  of  her  diamonds  procure  an  invitation 
in  return.  In  Mrs.  Longman  Tompkinson, 
therefore,  Lady  Adelaide  had  the  most  vehe- 
ment of  partisans; — flying  from  house  to 
house  in  a  frenzy  of  enthusiasm  for  her  wit, 
beauty,  and  accomplishments;  and  returning  to 
deposit  at  the  feet  of  her  lovely  patroness,  the 
bouquet  of  nettles  she  had  gathered  for  her  in 
the  shape  of  a  thousand  traits  of  Lady  Wy- 
combe^s  animosity. 

The  Darlings,  with  five  daughters  to  marry, 
judiciously  adhered  to  the  Wycombe  cause,  as 
the  safer  side  of  the  question.  For  Lady 
Wycombe  was  a  woman  congealed  in  the 
hardest  frost  of  virtue ;  and  there  was  a  suffi- 


128     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

cient  certificate  of  moral  excellence  conveyed 
in  the  formal  curtsey  with  which  the  countess 
honoured  the  family  in  society,  to  render  them 
stanch  in  their  opposition  to  the  flighty  Lady 
Adelaide  de  Vere.  Since  the  arrival  of  Helms- 
ley  and  Wroughton,  indeed,  poor  Lady  Darling 
half  repented  her  demonstrations  in  favour  of 
the  enemy;  wisely  remarking  to  a  singularly 
coincident  husband,  ^^  that  people  have  no 
business  to  indulge  in  dislikes  or  partialities 
who  have  a  family  to  provide  for/' 

The  society  of  Naples,  meanwhile,  found  its 
account  in  the  feminine  feud.  Lady  Wycombe, 
well  instructed  by  London  experience  that 
popularity  will  not  flourish  except  upon  a  diet 
of  ices  and  lemonade,  gave  weekly  soirtes  dan- 
sautes  of  considerable  brillianc)^  But  balls  are 
things  of  every-day  occurrence  during  the 
carnival ;  and  Lady  Adelaide  contrived,  after 
the  first  two  or  three,  to  give  the  tone  to  a 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  129 

general  disgust  for  the  heat^  noise,  and  fatigue 
of  such  entertainments,  as  a  prelude  to  the 
exquisite  weekly  concerts  which  Lord  Portumna 
was  commencing  on  Lady  Wycombe^s  nights 
at  the  Embassy. 

Let  a  private  individual,  whatever  his  rank, 
lavish  his  utmost  cost  and  care,  he  will  never 
succeed  in  producing  any  thing  equal  to  a 
diplomatic  fete.  It  becomes  as  much  a  matter 
of  business  as  of  pleasure,  to  crowd  to  the 
saloons  of  the  ambassador  of  one  of  the  higher 
powers ;  and  when  the  king  and  queen,  as  a 
matter  of  foreign  policy,  honoured  one  of  the 
musical  assemblies  of  Lord  Portumna  with 
their  presence  accompanied  by  the  whole  court, 
(and  just  then  all  Naples  was  a  courtier),  the 
triumph  of  the  Portumna  party  was  complete. 
The  temper  of  no  woman  of  fashion,  is  proof 
against  such  a  catastrophe.  There  remained  but 
one  resource.  Lady  Wycombe  whispered  to  her 

G  3 


130  THE    WOMAN    OP    THE   WORLD. 

intimates,  that  she  only  hoped  Lord  Por- 
tumna  would  marry  poor  Lady  Adelaide  de 
Vere ! — But  even  that  usually  successful  hint, 
fell  innocuous  ;  even  the  conscientious  Darlings, 
though  they  started  at  the  imphcation,  observed 
that  however  things  might  be,  it  was  the  duty 
of  the  English  in  a  foreign  country  to  attend 
the  fetes  of  their  ambassador. 

In  vain  did  her  ladyship  condescend  to  the 
most  pitiful  resources.  She  would  have  visited, 
nay,  have  honoured  with  her  countenance  at 
dinner,  the  Longman  Tompkinsons,  for  the  sake 
of  bribing  away  an  adherent  of  her  rival.  But 
the  Longman  Tompkinsons  stood  stanchly  by 
the  visited  of  royalty. 

The  countess,  at  length,  stooped  to  conquer 
by  despatching  an  invitation  to  her  soiree  dans- 
antes,  through  Alexis  Bagot,  to  Sir  William 
Helmsley  and  Wroughton. 

"  My  dear  fellow,  T  cannot  think  of  accept- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE   WORLD.  131 

ing  it/^  replied  Gerald.  "  I  had  not  the  honour 
of  visiting  Lady  Wycombe  in  London ;  1  can- 
not presume  to  make  her  acquaintance  on  the 
continent.^^ 

"  But  do  you  not  see  that  the  card  is  in  her 
own  handwriting  ? — It  was  quite  a  goodnatured 
idea  of  her  own.  Seeing  you  so  often  with  the 
St.  Pauls,  she  was  afraid  you  would  die  no 
other  death  than  that  of  the  bored.  Those 
people  are  so  densely  dull  and  commonplace — 
si  extraordinairement  ordinaire  P' 

"  A  thousand  thanks  !"  persisted  Gerald. 
"  I  am  not  a  dancer,  even  in  chilly  England 
where  one's  blood  requires  to  be  circulated  by 
exercise^  and  Naples  is  the  last  place  under 
the  sun  or  moon,  where  it  appears  advisable  to 
increase  the  labours  of  life.  Perhaps  Helmsley 
will  go. — Sir  William,  what  answer  to  Lady 
Wycombe  V 

^'  That  I  am  engaged  to  Lord  Portumna,^^ 


1.32  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

answered  Helmsley,  a  faint  streak  colouring  his 
cheek.  And  Gerald  was  deeply  gratified  by 
this  tacit  declaration  for  Lady  Adelaide ;  whom 
he  sometimes  feared  was  less  a  favourite  than 
he  could  wish  with  his  brother-in-law. 

Never,  however,  had  she  appeared  to  greater 
advantage  than  since  her  exposure  to  the  ani- 
mosities of  Lady  Wycombe.  Lady  Adelaide 
had  either  the  best  temper  or  the  best  com- 
mand of  temper  in  the  world.  It  did  not 
appear  in  her  nature  to  raise  her  voice,  or  in- 
dulge in  an  angry  retort.  She  smiled  at  the 
bitter  anecdotes  related  by  the  Longman  Tomp- 
kinson,  or  replied  by  a  brilliant  glance  of  irony 
to  the  scarcely  -  concealed  impertinences  of 
Bagot ;  but  Talleyrand  himself  could  not  have 
encountered  the  furious  provocations  of  Lady 
Wycombe  with  a  more  steady  impassibility. 
She  neither  chose  to  hear,  see,  nor  understand 
the  manoeuvres  of  which   she  was   the  o])ject. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  133 

Her  mild  courtesies  towards  her  infuriated 
rival  when  they  were  thrown  together  in  the 
narrow  circle  of  the  queen,  might  have  sufficed 
to  drive  to  distraction  a  more  patient  personage 
than  the  high-tory  English  countess. 


134  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


\   ' 


CHAPTER  XI. 


On  rit,  on  rit ! — C'est  une  maniere  de  pleurer. — C'est 
pour  s'etourdir. 

De  Lesser. 


One  night,  as  Sir  William  sat  enjoying  the 
rare  pleasure  of  solitude  in  his  opera-box,  which 
was  usually  crowded  with  the  ItaUan  friends  of 
Wroughton,  he  was  startled  from  his  reverie  by 
the  sudden  entrance  of  Sir  Raymond  Horton ; 
of  whom,  considering  their  previous  acquaint- 
ance, he  had  seen  but  little  during  his  sojourn 
in  Naples.     Sir  Raymond,  the  most  efficient 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  135 

man  attached  to  the  mission,  was  not  often  to 
be  met  with  in  society.  His  only  liaison  was 
with  the  family  of  the  Duchess  d^Ascoli,  the 
favourite  of  the  queen,  and  supposed  to  be  of 
a  political  rather  than  a  personal  nature.  For 
if  it  be  the  wisdom  of  the  ambassador  to  stand 
well  with  the  cabinet  at  home,  it  is  the  business 
of  a  secretary  of  legation  to  make  for  himself 
an  opening  into  the  mysteries  of  the  land, 
through  the  favour  of  its  powers  that  be. 

"  Any  news  V^ — demanded  Horton,  after  the 
usual  form  of  inquiry  of  public  men,  who  are 
the  first  to  know  every  thing  and  the  first  to 
protest  ignorance. 

^'  Nothing  that  I  am  aware  of. — Wroughton 
dined  with  Prince  Guastalla,  and  I  have  not 
seen  him  since  .^^ 

Sir  Raymond  was  not  listening  for  a  reply. 
His  glass  was  fixed  upon  the  opposite  box 
of  Lord  Colebrooke ;  in  which,  as  usual,  sat 


136  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Lady  Adelaide,  accompanied  by  the  pur- 
blind, stone-deaf  Neapolitan  Countess  Diodata 
Porro;  and  stood  Lord  Portumna,  unaccom* 
panied. 

Helmsley,  seeing  the  attention  of  his  com- 
panion thus  engrossed,  turned  his  attention  to 
the  stage, — the  crocchio  ristretto  of  the  house 
becoming  at  that  moment  hushed  to  listen  to 
the    touching    mad    scene   of  Pasta,    in  Anna 

Bolena;  when  suddenly,  in  the  midst  of  one  of 
the  most  thrilling  passages.  Sir  Horton  quietly 
demanded  of  him, — "Pray  what  is  the  rent-roll 
of  Mr.  Wroughton  ?" — 

^'  Are  you  charged  by  some  Italian  beauty 
with  proposals  for  his  hand  ?  ^^ — demanded 
Helmsley  in  his  turn,  on  recovering  from  his 
first  amazement. 

"  No, — my  inquiry  regards  his  own  in- 
terests.^^ 

^^  Perhaps  you  are  going  to  oifer  him  yours 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  137 

with  the  foreign  office^  to  get  him  appointed 
attache  here  ?" — inquired  Helmsley,  unable  to 
consider  the  matter  in  a  serious  point  of  view. 

'^  Still  less.  I  am  far  from  wanting  a  third 
sub,  whose  business  would  fall  upon  my  shoul- 
ders. Harford  is  too  rich  to  work,— Bagot  too 
fine. — Young  Wroughton  would  probably  be 
too  much  in  love.'^ 

'^  In  love ! — You  asked  me  just  now  for 
news,  my  dear  Sir  Raymond ;  and  it  seems  I 
have  much  to  learn  from  yourself."*' 

"  You  do  not  mean  to  say  that,  living  in 
intimate  confidence  with  Wroughton,  you  are 
ignorant  of  his  passion  for  Lady  Adelaide  de 
Vere  ?"— 

Sir  WilHam  paused  ere  he  ventured  to  reply. 
It  had  all  but  escaped  his  lips  that  men  living 
in  intimate  friendship  together,  often  know 
least  of  each  other^s  affections.  But  he  felt 
that  the  remark  might  savour  of  self- accusation. 


138     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

"  Gerald  has  never  admitted  to  me  any  attach- 
ment to  Lord  Colebrooke's  daughter/^  was  his 
tardy  reply. 

"  But  you  know  it^ — you  see  it, — you  cannot 
possibly  be  blind  to  it. —  TherCy  look  ! — He  has 
just  come  into  the  box.  Observe  with  what 
ardour  he  addresses  her  ; — see  how  consciously 
she  receives  him.^^ 

^^  But  Lord  Portumna,  you  perceive,  remains, 
— shows  no  empressement, — and  is  treated  with 
perfect  sangfroid; — and  he  also  has  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  attached  to  the  lady.^^ 

Sir  Raymond  shook  his  head.  ^'  You  are 
not  so  well  acquainted  as  I  am  with  the  dessoits 
des  cartes,^'  said  he.  ^^  Accompany  me  half  an 
hour  hence  to  the  coulisses ;  and  you  will  see 
Portumna  the  centre  of  a  group  of  the  houris 
of  that  lawless  paradise,  yet  wearing  the  same 
insouciant  air.  The  Venus  de  Medicis,  endowed 
with  the  wit  of  Madame  de  Sevigne,  would  not 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  139 

rouse  him  from  the  well-bred  apathy  created 
by  having  been  for  twenty  years  an  object  of 
courtship.  Portumna's  irregularities  are  so 
soberly  performed,  that  he  is  no  subject  for 
comparison  with  an  honest,  warm-hearted  young 
man  Hke  Wroughton/^ 

"  Thank  you  ! — He  is  all  you  say,  and  more. 
Gerald  is  a  sterHng  fellow ;  and,  since  I  needs 
must  add  it  for  your  satisfaction,  has  an  unen- 
cumbered estate  in  Northamptonshire  of  six 
thousand  a  year.^^ 

"  Six  thousand  ! — A  comfortable  independ- 
ence ;  but  scarcely  enough,  I  think,  to  place 
him  in  danger.  His  income  would  render  him 
a  deuced  bad  attache ;  but  scarcely  a  better 
husband  for  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere.^' 

^^  If  he  were  sufficiently  attached  to  make 
the  offer,"  said  Helmsley,  doubtingly. 

"  IJ  ! — It  depends  far  more  on  his  rent-roll 
than    his    passion.      With    fifteen    thousand, 


140  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Wroughton  would  be  a  lost  man.  Lady 
Adelaide  would  make  him  quite  sufficiently  in 
love,  any  day  it  suited  her  purpose.  She  is 
the  sort  of  woman  whom  no  living  man  could 
resist,  at  whose  head  she  chose  to  throw  her- 
self.'^ 

"  More  dangerous,  then,  than  I  thought  her. 
But  since  her  spells  are  so  potent,  why  does 
she  not  at  once  secure  Lord  Portumna  ?" 

^^ Secure  him? — Her  object  is  to  get  rid  of 
him! — Portumna^s  income  amounts  to  little 
more  than  the  interest  of  his  debts ;  a  charming 
person,  I  grant  you,  and  with  a  fine  position  in 
society,  but  wholly  unable  to  lose  himself  in 
matrimony.  He  must  calculate  to  a  guinea  the 
value  of  his  coronet,  and  try  to  get  double  the 
money  for  it,  from  a  city  heiress.  But  it  is  not 
of  Portumna  I  am  thinking.  Son  excellence  is 
old  enough  and  knowing  enough  to  take  care  of 
himself;  while  Wroughton,  or  I  am  much  mis- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  141 

taken,  is  young  of  liis  three- and- twenty  years^ 
and  wholly  at  the  mercy  of  a  beautiful  face 
with  an  ingratiating  smile.  It  is  for  this  I 
warn  you ! — The  lad  is  in  a  fair  way  to  marry 
Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere^  and  to  break  his  heart 
within  twelve  months  of  the  marriage/' 

^^I  am  at  least  obliged  to  you  for  your 
caution^  though  I  feel  it  to  be  superflous/'  said 
Sir  William^  coldly. — "  I  will  speak  to  Gerald, 
and—'' 

"^  Speak  to  him  ?'' — cried  the  diplomat  in  con- 
sternation. ''  My  dear  fellow,  are  you  mad, — 
or  have  you  learned  nothing  since  we  parted  at 
Eaton  ? — Speak  to  him  ? —  not  for  worlds  ! — You 
would  break  the  ice  for  him,  and  facilitate  his 
confessions.  No,  no ! — if youneeds  must  talk,let 
it  be  at  him  ! — Let  him  collaterally  know  that — '' 

The  honourable  secretary  was  interrupted, — 
Young  Harford,  having  noticed  the  entree  of  his 
chef  into  Sir  William  Helmsley's  box,  began  to 


142  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

consider  the  country  baronet  worthy  his 
patronage  -,  and  with  the  instinct  which  marks 
the  genuine  bore^  contrived  to  bestow  his  ever 
tedious  company  at  the  moment  of  all  others 
when  it  could  prove  most  tedious. 

"  How  fine  Rubini  has  been  to-night !"  said 
he^  by  way  of  a  safe  piece  of  criticism. 

"  Very  !'' — was  the  laconic  answer  of  Helms- 
ley;  Sir  Raymond  not  seeming  to  think  the 
molten  calf  deserving  a  reply. 

"  How  handsome  Lady  Adelaide  is  looking  I'' 
he  continued,  fixing  his  eyes  on  Lord  Cole- 
brooke^s  box, — "and  how  amazingly  Wroughton 
is  getting  on  with  her.  Ay,  by  Jove, — and  Lord 
Portumna  getting  off! — Look! — he  is  making 
his  parting  bow. — The  little  Clotilda  has  a 
supper  to-night.^^ — 

And  his  attention  thus  directed  to  the  spot. 
Sir  WilUam  was  forced  to  notice  that  after  his 
lordship^s  departure,  the  attentions   of  Gerald 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  143 

were  apparently  received  with  double  satisfac- 
tion. 

^^  How  astonishingly  Wroughton  talks  \"  ob- 
served Mr.  Harford.  ^^  I  can^t  understand  how 
people  can  be  at  the  trouble  of  saying  so  much, 
when  there  is  really  so  little  to  be  said.  That 
is  what  is  called  having  a  fine  flow  of  conversa- 
tion ;   /  call  it  an  overflow/^ 

"  Quite  right !"  cried  Sir  Raymond,  out  of 
patience  with  his  empty  impertinence.  ^'^  I 
recommend  2/011  to  filtre ; — a  drop  an  hour  is 
almost  as  much  as  we  can  swallow  V 

"  Are  you  going  to  Lady  Wycombe^s  to- 
night V — inquired  the  unabashed  attache,  of  Sir 
William  Helmsley.  "  But  I  forgot ! — I  believe 
you  are  not  of  her  set.  I  don^t  remember 
meeting  you  there.  Bagot  and  I  are  pretty 
nearly  the  only  Enghsh  admitted  to  the  house. 

"  Most  others  being   of  Helmsley's  and  my 
own  opinion,"  added  Sir  Raymond — ^^  that  there 


144     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

is  no  occasion  to  put  up  with  pompous  inanity 
beyond  the  limits  of  Grosvenor-square.  Here, 
where  one  may  enjoy  the  easy  laissez  aller  of 
ItaUan  society  and  the  charm  of  such  a  coterie 
as  Colebrooke's^  we  do  not  want  to  yawn 
away  an  evening  in  admiration  of  ceremony 
curtseying  to  ceremony,  and  vanity  holding  up 
her  mirror  to  vanity/^ 

^^  You  remind  me  of  my  friend  Sneyd's 
stricture  upon  the  English/^  drawled  Harford. 
^^  Sneyd  swears  that  we  abuse  each  other 
furiously  so  long  as  we  are  not  acquainted ;  but 
that  the  moment  we  are  formally  introduced, 
we  discover  black  to  be  white,  and  foul  to  be 
fair.'^ 

"  Lady  Wycombe's  case  must  be  a  bad  one 
then ;  since  I,  her  first  cousin,  can  perceive 
that  black  is  black  ;  while  Helmsley  (whom  she 
has  been  trying  this  month  past  to  cajole  into 
her    house)    cannot    discover   a   single   white 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  145 

streak  in  all  the  cubits  of  her  ladyship's  tower- 
ing altitude.'^ 

And  unable  longer  to  support  the  society  of 
one  whose  ignorance  was  the  plague  of  his 
mornings,  and  whose  impertinence  the  plague 
of  his  evenings.  Sir  Raymond  rose  and  hastily 
quitted  the  box. 

"  The  Pacha  is  in  a  bad  humour  to-night  ?' 
said  Harford,  quietly  installing  himself  in  the 
vacant  place.  ^'  He  could  not  stand  what  I  said 
about  Wroughton  and  Lady  Adelaide.'^ 

'^  What  particular  interest  has  Sir  Raymond 
Horton  in  either  }'' — 

^^  None  whatever !  —  The  very  thing  that 
provokes  him.  Lady  Wycombe  assures  me 
that  some  years  ago  (before  I  or  Lord  Portumna 
came  to  Naples)  Sir  Raymond,  who  was  then 
only  an  unpaid  attache  (poor  fellow  !  you  know, 
diplomacy  is  a  profession  to  Iiim),  wanted  to 

VOL.  I.  H 


146  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

marry  Lady  Adelaide^  who  encouraged^,  or 
pretended  to  encourage  him.  But^  just  as  the 
business  was  drawing  to  a  cUmax^  there  was  a 
change  of  ministry  at  home,  a  change  of  ambas- 
sadors here ; — Lord  Portumna  came,  saw,  and 
conquered; — and  Horton  has  never  forgiven 
either  the  lady  or  the  lord.^' 

Odious  as  was  to  Helmsley  the  pretention  of 
Mr.  Harford,  he  felt  grateful  for  an  anecdote 
which  seemed  to  explain  away  the  evident 
animosity  of  Horton  to  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere. 
Sir  Raymond  was  probably  still  attached, — 
still  jealous. 

Helmsley  had  previously  determined  to  come 
to  some  explanation  with  his  brother-in-law ; 
what  he  noiv  heard,  left  him  still  undecided.  To 
what,  in  fact,  amounted  all  that  was  alleged 
against  Lady  Adelaide  ? — What  had  the  worst  cf 
her  enemies  to  urge  against  her  ? — Only  those 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  14? 

indefinite  "  hums  and  ha^s/'  the  most  mis- 
chievous and  least  authentic  weapons  of  ca- 
lumny : 

Something  there  was — what  none  presumed  to  say, — 
Clouds  lightly  passing  as  the  summer  day  ; 

and  vexatious  as  was  the  reflection  they  con- 
veyed to  all  who  were  disposed  to  become  the 
champions  of  so  lovely  a  woman,  Helmsley  had 
found  no  opportunity  or  no  courage  to  trace  the 
evil  to  its  source.  The  only  positive  accusation 
which  had  reached  his  ear,  was  her  desertion  of 
Sir  Raymond  Horton  for  a  greater  man,  which 
rested  on  the  testimony  of  a  fool ;  and  that 
she  would  now  willingly  renounce  the  impover- 
ished great  man  for  a  rich,  which  rested  on  the 
accusation  of  Sir  Raymond.  Either  might  be 
mistaken,  or  both  be  actuated  by  personal 
motives. 

But  whether  or  not  he  brought  the  business 
H  2 


148  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

to  an  explanation^  Helmsley  felt  it  due  to  his 
brother-in-law  to  satisfy  his  own  misgivings. 
He  determined  to  interrogate  Dr.  Moorsom^ — 
to  frequent  the  society  of  Lady  Wycombe, — to 
gossip  with  Mrs.  St.  Paul, — to  leave,  in  shorty 
no  means  untried  to  come  at  the  truth.  Gerald 
Wroughton  must  not  be  sacrificed  to  the  ma- 
noeuvres of  a  coquette ;  Gerald  Wroughton 
must  not  become  the  pis-aller  of  one,  however 
beautiful,  however  attractive,  whose  name  had 
been  coupled  in  the  rumours  of  societ}^  ■v\dth 
epithets  of  merited  reproach.  The  brother  of 
his  beloved  Marcella  must  be  rescued  at  all 
risks,  from  a  rash  and  hazardous  connexion. 
Sir  William  flattered  himself,  that  though  the 
tie  of  guardian  and  ward  had  been  of  brief 
duration  between  them,  he  still  retained  con- 
siderable influence  over  the  ingenuous  nature 
of  Gerald ;  and  should  the  result  of  his  inquiries 
prove    unsatisfactory,    doubted   not    that    his 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE   WORLD.      [    149 

arguments   might   overmaster    the    attractions 
of  the  frail  enchantress. 

Good  easy  man ! — As  if  all  the  wisdom  of 
Solomon  would  avail  the  weight  of  a  single 
grain  of  sand  against  the  seductions  of  a  beauti- 
ful and  plausible  woman  I 


150  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


You  rock'd  my  cradle, — were  my  guide 
In  youth,  still  tending  at  my  side. 
But  now,  dear  Sir,  my  beard  is  grown, 
And  I'm  a  child  to  you  alone. 

Martial. 

Anxious  and  dispirited,  Helmsley  retired 
from  the  Opera  before  the  fall  of  the  curtain. 
On  his  return  home,  he  found  letters  from 
England, — the  courier  having  been  delayed  by 
the  unfavourable  state  of  the  weather.  The 
intelligence  he  received  was  cheering.  His 
children  were  well  and  happy ;  a  little  letter  in 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  151 

the  crooked  handwriting  of  each,  afforded  ample 
confirmation  of  the  sober  commendations  of 
Aunt  Margaret. 

But  there  was  a  passage  in  Emma  Wrough- 
ton's  epistle  which  startled  him.  After  such 
details  of  their  little  family  circle  as  might 
have  been  supposed  to  flow  from  the  pen 
and  heart  of  a  mother,  she  proceeded  thus. — 
^'  I  am  not  satisfied,  my  dear  brother,  with 
Gerald's  letters,  or  with  the  accounts  that  reach 
us  of  him.  Mr.  De  Ligne  informs  us  that  he 
scarcely  stirs  from  the  house  of  Lord  Cole- 
brooke ;  and  when  I  reflect  upon  the  opinions 
entertained  by  dear  Marcella  of  that  family,  I 
tremble  to  anticipate  any  nearer  connexion. 
His  own  letters  too, — so  incoherent, — so  wild, — 
so  much  at  variance  with  the  tone  of  his  former 
correspondence,  confirm  my  apprehensions ; 
and  were  it  not  that  you  have  never  named 
these  people,  never  even  alluded  to  the  name  of 


152     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere,  I  should  give  it  up  as 
a  lost  case.  But  living  on  terms  of  perfect 
confidence^  you  could  not  but  be  aware  of 
the  fact,  were  things  as  I  fear;  and  would 
have  interfered  to  save  dear  Gerald  from  the 
worst  of  destinies, — a  marriage  with  a  mere 
woman  of  the  world. 

^^  Still,  my  dear  Helmsley,  with  all  a  sister's 
anxiety  on  so  important  a  matter,  I  cannot  but 
remember  your  studious  habits,  your  abstrac- 
tion of  mind  and  fear  that  his  danger  may  have 
escaped  your  notice.  T  call  upon  you,  therefore, 
in  my  own  name  and  that  of  one  still  dearer  to 
you,  to  frustrate  the  plans  of  these  people,  and 
prevent  so  fatal  a  connexion ;  or,  at  least,  direct 
your  attention  to  his  proceedings,  and  let  us 
know  with  the  least  possible  delay  the  extent 
of  evil  for  which  we  must  be  prepared.  Once 
his  guardian,  ever  his  brother,  be  still,  I  beseech 
you,  his   friend  and   councillor! — Remember, 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  153 

we  look  for  his  happiness  at  your  hands  ! — When 
you  set  off  together  on  this  ill-starred  expedi- 
tion^ I  would  have  given  worlds  to  oppose  the 
scheme;  but  with  Gerald's  health  at  stake^  I 
dared  not  interfere.  I  felt,  too,  that  you  would 
be  on  the  spot  to  watch  over  him, — to  save  his 
young  and  inexperienced  heart  and  head  from 

But  enough  of  this !  I  will  not  detain 

you  by  the  expression  of  fears  which,  after  all, 
may  prove  absurd,  and  will  try  to  banish 
them  from  my  mind  till  I  once  more  welcome 
your  handwriting. 

Your  ever  affectionate  sister, 

E.  W.^^ 

"  His  brother, — his  friend, — his  councillor. — ^' 
The  words  appealed  painfully  to  the  conscience 
of  Helmslcv^ !  — How  had  he  fulfilled  those 
trusts? — Of  whom  had  he  thought  since  his 
arrival  in  Italy,  save  of  himself ; — at  first,  a  prey 
to  selfish  melancholy, — and  now  the  victim  of 

h3 


154  TEIE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

equally  selfish  elation! — What  proof  had  he 
given  of  that  sturdiness  of  manly  friendship  to 
which  he  formed  such  lofty  pretensions  ? — What 
had  he  done  to  estrange  Gerald  Wroughton 
from  the  influence  of  Lord  Colebrooke^s  society 
and  Lady  Adelaide's  attractions  ? — Nothing ! — 
for  he  was  a  slave  to  them  himself ! 

Helmsley  was  pacing  the  room  with  hurried 
footsteps^  when  this  fatal  acknowledgment  burst 
from  his  lips.  It  was  a  confession  he  had 
scarcely  dared  to  frame  in  the  depths  of  his 
secret  thoughts ;  yet  now,  it  escaped  his  utter- 
ance. Yes  !  —  he  loved  Lady  Adelaide  de 
Vere ; — and  it  was  this  wild  and  inexcusable 
passion,  which  had  deterred  him  from  remon- 
strating with  Gerald. — He  felt  that  the  jealousy 
of  a  rival,  not  the  prudence  of  a  councillor, 
would  instigate  his  advice ;  and  had  too  much 
generosity  of  mind  to  plead  under  false  colours  ! 

But  Emma's  letter  recalled  him  to  himself. 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.     155 

Emma^s  letter  appealed  to  him  in  a  name  which 
was  still  sacred  as  ever  in  the  holiest  recesses 
of  his  heart,  and  determined  him  to  throw  off 
a  degrading  infatuation. 

He  knew  that  at  that  very  moment  Wrough- 
ton  was  at  the  Palazzo  Balbi.     Lady  Adelaide 
and  her  father  were  in  the  habit  of  receiving 
company  after  the  opera.     He  had  the  general 
entree  of  the  house ;   nor  was  the  hour  such  as 
to   render   his   visit   extraordinary.      Of  late, 
indeed,    he   had   studiously   absented    himself 
from  society  which  he  felt  was  becoming  too 
dangerously  dear;  but  Lord  Colebrooke  and  his 
daughter  had  probably  never  noticed  his  absence 
and  would  be  equally  unobsen^ant  of  his  return. 
As  if  mistrusting  his  own  courage,  he  would 
not  w^ait  for  a  carriage,  but  set  off  hurriedly  on 
foot ;  and  in  a  few  minutes,  was  announced  in 
the  well-known  antechamber.     The  sort  of  tre- 
pidation of  which,  for  some  weeks  past,  he  had 


156  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

been  conscious^  in  approaching  the  presence  of 
Lady  Adelaide,  overcame  him  with  double  force 
as  he  entered  the  saloon. 

But  in  the  first  of  the  two  drawing-rooms, 
there  was  only  Lord  Colebrooke^s  whist-table, 
at  which  were  the  Earl,  Sir  James  Darling,  an 
Italian  Abbe,  and  the  Princess  Stradalla,  with 
Dr.  Moorsom  and  one  or  two  Neapolitan 
noblemen  looking  on ;  while  in  a  remote  corner 
of  the  room,  sat  Mrs.  Longman  Tompkinson 
in  vehement  discourse  with  the  Duke  of  San 
Magnanos,  the  Sjoanish  ambassador;  and  as 
Sir  William  was  proceeding  to  the  inner  sanc- 
tuary, the  folding-doors  of  which  stood  open, 
he  found  himself  plucked  by  the  sleeve  by  the 
gorgeous  lady  of  the  looms. 

'^  My  dear  Sir  William,  I  am  enchanted  to 
see  you, — I  entreat  you  to  come  to  my  assist- 
ance y — cried  Mrs.  Longman  Tompkinson. 
"  Do  pray  interpret  for  me  a  bit  to  his   Ex- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  157 

celleiicy  the  Duke  of  San  Magnanos,  —  (a 
grandee  of  the  first  class,  you  know,  and  the 
richest  subject  in  Spain),"  added  she,  in  a 
whisper.  "I  have  been  trying  to  make  him 
understand  that  if  he  should  ever  visit  England, 
it  will  give  Mr.  T.  and  myself  the  greatest 
pleasure  to  see  him  at  Stoke  Park,  or  at  our  man- 
sion in  Carlton  Terrace.  Our  mansion  in  Carlton 
Terrace  is  let  for  five  years ;  but  it  is  not  likely 
the  Duke  will  quit  Naples  within  that  time.'^ 

During  this  explanation,  Mrs.  Longman 
Tompkinson^s  hand  was  placed  detainingly  on 
the  arm  of  the  Spanish  grandee  of  the  first 
class,  who  was  about  to  escape  her  ;  and 
Helmsley,  compassionating  his  durance,  re- 
peated as  succinctly  as  possible,  the  invita- 
tion which  the  '^^  French  of  Stratford  school  by 
Bow"  of  Mrs.  Longman  T.,  had  left  some- 
what problematical.  The  polite  old  man 
bowed  low  to  Helmsley, — lower  to  the  lady, — 


158  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

and  promised  and  vowed  things  which  he  knew 
he  should  never  be  required  to  perform. 

^^  Pray  explain  to  his  Excellency  all  about 
Stoke  Park  \"  cried  Mrs.  Longman  Tomp- 
kinson^  enchanted  at  the  prospect  of  adding 
the  name  of  a  Spanish  duke  to  a  visiting 
list  heretofore  adorned  only  with  the  titles 
of  a  few  damaged  Irish  peers.  "  Tell  him  it 
was  built  by  Inigo  Jones,  and  that  the  grand 
hall  is  painted  by  Laguerre.'' 

"  Plait-il  ?''  demanded  the  deaf  old  Duke, 
fancying  the  latter  word  to  allude  to  the  affairs 
of  Spain. 

'^  There ! — you  see  he  is  dying  to  know  all 
about  it !  —  Explain  that  Stoke  Park  was 
inhabited  by  the  French  princes  after  the 
revolution ;  which  is  a  curious  historical  fact,  as 
the  Prince  of  Canino  (Lucien  Bonaparte  that 
was)  spent  a  fortnight  there  with  Mr.  Longman 
Tompkinson  and  myself  last  year." 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  159 

Helmsley  repeated  as  little  of  all  this  as 
would  pacify  the  lady,  but  quite  enough  to  tire 
the  patience  of  the  Duke ;  who  had  been  listen- 
ing to  an  unintelligible  farrago  for  the  last  haK- 
hour,  concerning  "  hs  ttats  de  mon  mari  dans 
rJngleterre.'*  But  the  politeness  of  a  foreigner 
outlasts  his  patience ;  and  the  old  gentle- 
man, eager  as  he  was  to  break  away  to  the 
whist-table,  kept  bowing  and  smiling  so  com- 
placently, that  Sir  William  began  to  fear  he 
should  next  be  required  to  enlarge  upon  what 
he  had  often  heard  Mrs.  Longman  Tompkinson 
describe  as  the  goblin  hangings  of  her  mansion 
in  Carlton  Terrace. — Fortunately,  the  conclu- 
sion of  a  rubber  intervened  ;  and  the  Abbe  cut- 
ting out,  the  Duke  was  strenuously  invited  by 
Lord  Colebrooke  to  cut  in. 

But  the  movement  by  which  San  Magnanos 
was  released,  did  not  admit  of  the  escape  of 
Helmsley.     To  leave  the  only  lady  in  the  room 


160 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


sitting  alone  in  a  corner^  was  out  of  the  ques- 
tion ;  and  he  was  forced  to  take  the  vacated 
chair^  and  listen  for  the  hundredth  time  to 
Mrs.  Longman  Tompkinson's  description  of 
the  extent  of  her  estates,  the  amount  of  game 
bagged  at  her  last  battue,  and  the  square  feet 
of  glass  in  her  pineries.  Not  a  soul  in  Naples 
but  could  have  set  the  parvenue  lady  right  to 
a  fraction,  so  well  were  they  habituated  to 
the  recapitulation ! 

Luckily,  she  was  not  the  woman  to  require 
an  answer  beyond  an  affirmative  movement  of 
the  head;  and  Helmsley,  having  discovered 
that  his  position  commanded  a  view  of  all  that 
was  passing  in  the  inner  drawing-room,  was 
content  to  seetJi  to  listen  and  admire. 

During  his  hurried  walk,  the  impetuosity 
of  feeling  arising  from  the  perusal  of  Em- 
ma's letter,  had  created  a  vague  and  invo- 
luntary    prejudice     not     only     against     Lord 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  161 

Colebrooke  and  his  daughter^  but  all  their 
society.  Though  not  a  single  circumstance 
or  peculiarity  had  ever  struck  him  under  their 
roof  as  indecorous  or  irregular,  he  now  chose  to 
imagine  an  immoral  tendency  in  the  whole  coterie. 
There  must  be  something  wrong  1 — He  was 
prepared  to  discover  indelicacy  and  levity  in  all 
that  met  his  ear  or  eye  at  the  Palazzo  Balbi. 

On  casting  a  hurried  glance,  however,  into 
the  adjoining  room,  the  first  object  that  struck 
him  was  Lady  Darling,  dull,  cold,  and  upright 
as  a  statue  of  snow, — a  sentence  falling  from 
her  lips  every  quarter  of  an  hour,  with  watch- 
man-like precision,  in  answer  to  the  lively 
sallies  of  Prince  Guastalla  who  was  making  up 
to  her  eldest  daughter,  continentalwise,  through 
the  medium  of  mamma.  Close  beside  her, 
were  the  frozen  figures  of  the  two  girls, 
whom  old  Moorsom   had  deserted  the  whist- 


162  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

table,  now  that  its  best  player  was  gone,  to 
beguile  into  a  smile.  A  little  further  on,  stood 
St.  Paul,  maundering  old  womanisms  with  the 
venerable  Princess  Sforza;  while  his  wife 
sat  distorting  herself  into  a  thousand  attitudes, 
to  withdraw  the  attention  of  Gerald  Wroughton 
and  Ottavio  Sforza  from  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere. 
Helmsley  could  not  but  perceive  how  admiringly, 
passionately,  the  eyes  of  his  brother-in-law 
were  fixed  on  that  faultless  form ;  little  sus- 
pecting that,  while  he  gazed,  his  own  were 
rapidly  attaining  a  similar  expression  ! — 

It  would  have  been  difficult  for  an  artist  to 
conceive  a  face  and  figure  nearer  to  perfection 
than  that  of  Lady  Adelaide ;  the  most  exquisite 
symmetry  being  animated  by  the  most  exquisite 
grace,  and  the  utmost  regularity  of  features 
enlivened  by  the  brightest  intelligence.  But 
it  was    scarcely  so   much  these    endowments 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.     163 

as  the  charm  of  her  manners  which  rendered 
her  irresistible.  The  sweetest  tones  gave  ut- 
terance to  expressions  ever  kind  or  courteous. 
'^  Without  one  jarring  atom  formed/^  she 
seemed  to  personify  all  that  is  most  attractive 
in  her  sex  ! — 

As  Helmsley  sat,  he  could  not  catch  even 
a  murmur  of  her  voice  ;  yet  the  mutable  coun- 
tenance on  which  his  eyes  were  fixed,  seemed 
to  reveal  the  graceful  pleasantries  with  which 
she  was  parrying  every  extravagance  that  fell 
from  the  lips  of  Mrs.  St.  Paul ;  and  striving 
to  moderate  the  enthusiasm  of  Sforza  and 
Wroughton  at  every  retort  which  escaped  her 
own.  It  was  impossible  to  doubt  that  both 
these  young  men  were  her  infatuated  admirers ; 
it  was  impossible  to  charge  her  with  bestowing 
the  smallest  encouragement  on  either. 

From  his  fit  of  abstraction,  he  was  recalled 
by  the  monotonous   chime  of  Mrs.  Longman 


164     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

Tompkinson.  "  For^  as  I  was  saying  to  Princess 
Stradalla  before  you  came  in,  I  am  sure  I  cannot 
conceive  what  induces  Tompkinson  and  myself 
to  give  up  .our  comforts  and  luxuries  (for  I 
must  do  ourselves  the  justice  to  say  that  I  don^t 
know  a  house  in  London  finished  with  such 
attention  to  comfort  as  our  mansion  in  Carl- 
ton TerracC;,  doors  listed  and  patent  hinges 
down  to  the  very  butler's  pantry), — to  give  it  all 
up  as  I  was  saying,  for  a  half-furnished  barn  of 
a  barrack,  they  call  a  palace  ;  without  a  com- 
fortable chair  to  sit  in  or  feather-bed  to  lie  on  ! 
— To  be  sure  the  chmate  is  superior. — But  what 
signifies  winter  weather  without,  when  one's 
comfortably  lodged  in-doors  ? — and  as  to  spring 
and  summer,  I  take  it  Old  England  has  the 
best  of  it !  Shall  you  be  in  town  early  in  the 
season.  Sir  William  V 

^^  Certainly — quite  so — '^  replied  Helmsley, 
whose  faculties  were  again  wandering. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  165 


(S 


Oh  !  then_, — I  must  insist  on  your  noticing 
our  house^  the  first  time  you  drive  through 
Carlton  Terrace^ — you  will  know  it  by  the 
mahogany  window-frames.  The  best-finished 
house  there !  The  lamp-posts  and  doorway 
executed  after  Mr.  Longman  Tompkinson^s  own 
design  ! — There  was  a  sketch  of  them  in  Somer- 
set House,  last  exhibition,  by  a  young  artist 
whom  Mr.  Longman  Tompkinson  particularly 
patronizes.  I  am  sorry  I  cannot  obtain  you  a 
view  of  the  interior;  the  house  is  let  to  the 
Brazilian  Ambassador.  I  would  not  have  ac- 
cepted a  commoner  for  tenant ;  for  even  when 
one  does  let  one^s  house,  one  likes  to  know  that 
things  are  done  there  in  a  certain  style.  How- 
ever, if  you  are  particularly  anxious  to  see  it 
(for  I  think  I  may  say  that  the  goblin  tapestry 
is  unique  of  its  kind  in  London),  perhaps  Mr. 
LongmanTompkinson  would  not  object  to  fur- 
nish you  with  a  letter  to " 


166  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Regardless  of  the  interruption.  Sir  WiUiam 
could  not  resist  the  opportunity  which  now 
presented  itself  to  make  his  way  into  the  other 
room.  The  St.  Pauls  were  moving.  As  they 
passed  him,  he  rose  in  the  midst  of  Mrs. 
Longman  Tompkinson's  harangue,  to  say 
good-night ;  and,  with  a  slight  bow  to  the 
astonished  lady,  proceeded  onwards  to  pay 
his  compliments  to  Lady  Adelaide.  But  the 
chair  occupied  by  Mrs.  St.  Paul  was  already 
seized  by  Prince  Ottavio,  and  Helmsley,  found 
himself  compelled  to  fall  back  upon  Lady 
Darling  and  her  dummies  :  —  still  out  of 
hearing  of  those  who  had  attracted  him  towards 
the  circle. 

The  quick  eye  of  Lady  Adelaide  marked  his 
discomfiture  ;  as  well  as  the  alacrity  with  which 
he  was  seized  upon  by  Lady  Darling  to  be- 
come the  auditor  of  those  excellent  theories 
of  female  education,  with  which  she   was   in 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.     167 

the  habit  of  favouring  all  the  unmarried  men 
in  Naples. 

"  Pray  admire/^  said  Lady  Adelaide  to 
Wroughton^  in  Italian,  "the  patience  with 
which  your  brother  is  undergoing  his  martyr- 
dom. You,  who  have  heard  so  much  of  the 
^  sweetness  of  my  dear  Marians  disposition/ 
and  nhe  mild  retiring  domestic  character  of 
my  poor  Fanny/  can  enter  into  his  suffer- 
ings." 

"  Sir  WiUiam's  ways  of  thinking  resemble 
in  so  many  respects  those  of  Lady  Darling, 
that  he  is  less  to  be  pitied  than  you  imagine,^^ 
repHed  Gerald.  "  Observe  his  approving  bow 
in  answer  to  her  ladyship^s  last  sentence ! — I 
will  answer  for  it  she  has  been  assuring 
him,  as  she  constantly  assures  me,  that  her 
chief  study  on  the  continent  is  to  keep  her 
poor  dear  girls  strictly  Enghsh ;  that  however 


168     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

late  the  ball  overnight,  they  rise  at  eight  for 
family  prayers ;  that  their  constitutions  are 
secured  from  injury  by  an  Enghsh  cook  in 
their  suite,  and  their  morals  by  never  losing 
sight  of  an  English  governess.  Of  all  this,  I 
am  quite  sure,  Helmsley  is  earnest  in  his 
approval/^ 

^^  I  always  heard  he  was  a  pattern  for  country- 
gentlemen  !'^  said  Lady  Adelaide,  with  a  feeble 
smile  "  for  whom  Lady  Mary  Wortley  Mon- 
tagu condensed  Lord  Lyttleton^s  ^  advice  to  a 
lady' into 

Be  plain  in  dress, — be  sober  in  your  diet ; 
In  short,  my  deary,  kiss  me,  and  be  quiet ! 

But  since  the  Darling  school  is  so  much  to  his 
taste,  why  not  decide  between  ^  dear  Maria'  and 
'  poor  Fanny  ?'  The  Darlings  are  of  a  highly 
respectable     Yorkshire     family  —  the      match 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  169 

would  be  very  suitable, — all  country  baronets 
together  !^^ 

Without  resenting  the  tone  of  disparage- 
ment used  by  his  fair  companion,  Gerald 
contented  himself  with  replying—  '^  Poor 
Helmsley  will  never  marry  again.  Helmsley 
is  wedded  to  the  grave.  It  is  impossible  for 
a  man  to  be  more  passionately  attached  than 
he  was  to  my  poor  sister.^^ 

"  Your  remark  does  not  exhibit  the  know- 
ledge of  human  nature  for  which  I  gave  you 
credit/^  observed  Lady  Adelaide.  "  The  man 
who  has  once  loved  passionately^  will  love 
again ;  the  tendencies  of  his  character  ensure  it. 
It  is  your  plodding,  moderate,  matter-of-fact 
men,  who  are  faithful  through  life  and  death. 
My  right  hand  upx)n  it.  Sir  William  Helmsley 
marries  again !" 

"  I  doubt  it, — permit  me  still  to  doubt  it  \" 
replied  Gerald ',  "  or,  at  all  events,  permit  me 

VOL.  I.  I 


170     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

to  assure  you,  that  at  present  he  has  no  eyes 
for  living  woman. '^ 

Lady  Adelaide  smiled  incredulously. 

"  Were  it  necessary,  I  would  stake  my  life/^ 
persisted  Gerald,  ''  that  from  the  period  of  my 
poor  sister^s  death,  he  has  been  scarcely  aware 
of  the  existence  of  any  other  woman.^^ 

They  were  still  conversing  in  Italian;  and, 
at  this  assertion,  Lady  Adelaide  exchanged  a 
hasty  glance  with  Ottavio  Sforza,  who  imme- 
diately added,  "  In  that  case,  and  in  society 
such  as  this,  we  are  bound  to  consider  him  a 
very  happy,  because  a  very  insensible  man.^^ 

Wroughton,  not  noticing  the  inference,  re- 
sumed in  a  lower  voice,  as  if  dreading  to  be 
overheard  by  the  subject  of  their  conversation, — 
^^  Your  view  of  Helmsley^s  position  is  far  more 
agreeable  to  me  than  my  own ;  and  I  would 
therefore  willingly  adopt  it.  Nothing,  I  am 
convinced,  would  be  so  advantageous  to  my 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  IJl 

little  nephew  and  niece   as  the  prudent  re- 
marriage of  their  father/^ 

''  Provided  the  prudent  marriage  were  also 
one  of  inclination/^  said  Lady  Adelaide, 
gravely,  "  But,  in  truth,  no  other  marriage 
can  be  termed  prudent/* 

Sir  William,  who  was  all  this  time  intently 
regarding  her  little  suspecting  that  he  afforded 
the  text  of  her  discourse,  could  not  but  notice 
the  sort  of  saddened  expression  which  now 
overspread  her  countenance.  He  would  have 
given  much  to  approach  and  join  in  a  conver- 
sation that  seemed  to  be  taking  a  serious  turn. 
But  the  Darhngs  were  departing.  His  aid  was 
required  in  seeking  tippets  for  ^^  dear  Maria/^ 
and  cloaks  for  ^^  poor  Fanny ;"  and  when  he 
returned  to  the  saloon,  Wroughton  himself 
was  taking  leave. 

It  had  been   his    intention   to   seek   some 
explanation    from    his    brother-in-law,  before 

1  2 


1/2  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

they  parted  for  the  night.  But  his  spirits  were 
now  excited  to  a  species  of  nervous  tremour 
which  he  felt  would  unfit  him  for  the  task. 
He  determined,  therefore,  to  defer  till  the 
morrow  the  purposed  inquiry;  and  place  Em^ 
ma's  letter  in  her  brother's  hand  as  a  plea  for 
his  interference.  It  was  sufficiently  mortifying 
that  Gerald's  reserve  should  have  rendered  such 
a  proceeding  necessary  ;  but  if  displeased  with 
Gerald,  he  retired  to  rest  that  night  far  more 
indignant  against  himself! 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  173 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


Leon.  Are  these  things  spoken,  or  do  I  but  dream  ? 
D.  John.  Sir,  they  are  spoken,  and  these  things  are  true. 

Shakspeare. 


Sir  William  had  forgotten  that  he  was 
engaged  to  accompany  St.  Paul  early  on  the 
following  morning,  on  a  drive  along  the  coast 
towards  Baise ;  and  as  the  engagement  was 
made  between  themselves  only,  he  was  vexed, 
on  entering  the  britschka  of  the  classic,  to  find 
one  corner  of  it  occupied  by  Mrs.  St.  Paul, 
her  fur  cloak  and  her  affectations.  He  felt 
that  they  should  have  been  better  alone.     If 


174     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

St.  Paul  fell  somewhat  below  the  mark  of 
agreeabiHty  as  a  companion,  he  was  at  least 
free  from  the  bitterness  which  sometimes  sent 
showers  of  sleet  from  between  the  lips  of  his 
^vife. 

^^  What  a  relief  it  is  to  see  a  well-appointed 
English  carriage,  after  the  wretched  turn-outs 
for  which  one  is  obliged  to  be  thankful  in 
Italy,"  observed  Helmsley,  good-humouredly, 
— aware  how  much  the  St.  Pauls  prided  them- 
selves on  the  neatness  of  their  equipage. 

^^  We  shall  not  dare  appear  on  the  Corso, 
with  morning  liveries  in  this  unpretending 
vehicle  much  longer  !"  exclaimed  Mrs.  St. 
Paul.  '^  The  Schrams  are  arrived — to  dazzle  all 
eyes  with  the  tinsel  and  gold-leaf  which  form 
the  delight  of  rich  Yankees  and  Bartholomew- 
Fair  showmen." 

^^  And  who  are  the  Schrams  ?" — inquired  Sir 
WiUiam ;  "  I  never  even  heard  of  them." 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  175 

'^  You  are  fortunate,  then,  in  having  lived 
out  of  hearing  of  the  tin-trumpets  of  news- 
paper puffery/^  replied  the  lady,  "The 
Schrams  are  New-York  Newcomes,  who  have 
performed  ko-too  at  the  foot  of  all  the  thrones 
of  Europe,  saving  that  of  England,  where  they 
know  their  pretensions  would  be  weighed  in 
the  balance,  and  found  wanting/' 

"  Americans  perform  Ko-too }"  cried  Sir 
William.     "  Forbid  it,  shade  of  Washington  V 

'^  The  patriarch  Schram  is  an  empty,  pomp- 
ous fellow,  bursting  with  the  sense  of  his 
personal  importance  yet  unable  to  forgive 
himself  for  not  having  been  born  a  lord ;  who 
throws  away  his  money,  not  like  a  prince 
but  like  a  parvenu,^'  added  Mrs,  St,  Paul. 

^^  Throw  away  the  only  thing  that  seems 
to  have  raised  him  in  the  world? — But  what 
brings  these  people  to  Naples  V^ — 

A    desire    of   smoking    the     calumet    of 


(( 


176  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

peace  with  another  aristocracy/^  replied  St. 
Paul.  "  Paris  is  their  meridian ;  but  having 
unexpectedly  attained  an  accession  of  fortune, 
they  wisely  recollect  that  objects  destined 
to  shine  in  the  celestial  spheres  are  lost  to 
mortal  sight  for  a  time  before  they  reappear 
as  constellations;  and  have  therefore  eclipsed 
themselves  preparatory  to  future  splendour/' 

^^  But  though  in  eclipse,  I  suppose  they 
will  justify  the  adage  by  giving  feasts  for  wise 
men  to  eat? — Such  a  man  as  Mr.  Schram 
ought  surely  to  be  V Amiphytrion  oil  fon 
dine  V — 

"  He  prefers  balls.  His  guests  come  in  finer 
clothes,  and  he  is  warranted  in  a  more  gorge- 
ous display/'  said  Mr.  St.  Paul.  "  I  wonder 
to  whom  they  will  accrocher  themselves  in 
Naples  ? — Lady  Wycombe,  of  course,  is  out  of 
the  question.'' 

Why  out  of  the  question  ? — I  suppose  she 


e( 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  l77 

is  as  accessible  to  flattery  and  subservience  as 
the  rest  of  the  world  ?  — It  would  not  surprise 
me  if  she  were  to  take  it  into  her  head  to 
patronize  these  ultramarines^  if  only  for  the 
sake  of  enjoying  the  sense  of  her  own  supe- 
riority,^^ 

^^  It  would  be  charity  to  afford  a  hint  to 
Schram  that  he  has  only  to  declare  war  against 
Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere,  to  be  accepted  as  an 
ally  of  the  Wycomites/'  cried  Mrs.  St.  Paul. 
^'  By  the  way^  we  met  Lady  Adelaide  as  we 
were  driving  to  your  house. ^^ 

"So  early?" 

"  I  fancy  she  had  been  to  Santa  Chiara^  to 
see  her  little  girl.  I  know  she  is  only  allowed 
to  visit  the  child  on  appointed  days.^^ 

Sir  WilHam  was  too  much  astonished  for 
utterance.  He  felt  persuaded  that  he  had 
misunderstood  Mrs.  St.  Paul;  but  it  was  im- 

I  3 


178     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

possible  to  require  the  repetition  of  a  lady^s 
words. 

"  Admire,  I  beseech  you,  the  light  which  is 
now  playing  upon  the  Castello  di  Baise  \" 
interrupted  Mr.  St.  Paul. — ^^  The  ruin  of 
which  you  catch  a  glimpse  beyond,  between 
the  castle  and  the  headland  of  Misenum,  is 
the  Sepolcro  di  Agrippina,  the  last  existing 
record  of  a  too  gloomy  tragedy  V 

Sir  Wilham  looked  and  looked,  but  saw 
nothing;  not  even  the  "bending  of  the  shore' ' 
they  were  pursuing.  There  was  a  mist  before 
his  eyes. 

And  his  ears  tingled  and  his  colour  fled  ; 

yet  his  lips  recoiled  from  the  interrogation 
which  was  bursting  from  the  inmost  recesses 
of  his  heart. 

^^  Every  road  of  the  route  we  are  travers- 
ing, is  a  site  consecrated  by  history  or  song,^' 
resumed  Mrs.  St.  Paul.    "  By  looking  back. 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD.  179 

we  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  Scoglio  di  Virgilio 
fast  by  the  ruins  of  the  marino  of  Lucullus; 
and  beyond '* 

"  Did  I  understand  you  to  say  the  daughter 
of  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere?^^ — suddenly  inter- 
rupted poor  Helmsley,  unconscious  of  the  wet 
blanket  of  erudition  thrown  over  his  impa- 
tience. 

^^  Her  little  girl. — Miss  Sherburne  is  only 
six  years  old  you  know,  but  I  am  told  that 
she  is  already  a  perfect  miniature  of  her 
mother." 

"  And  Lady  Adelaide  openly  avows  and 
visits  her  ?" — demanded  Sir  William,  the  blood 
boiling  in  his  veins, 

"  Why  not  ? — There  is  surely  no  necessity 
that  her  hatred  of  the  father  should  extend 
to  the  unfortunate  child  ? — I  do  not  sup- 
pose indeed  that  she  is  one  of  your  passion- 
ately tender  mothers.      But  I  conclude   that 


180  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

her  motive  for  persuading  Lord  Colebrooke 
to  return  again  to  Naples,  is  that  she  may 
not  altogether  lose  sight  of  the  poor  little 
thing.  Old  Lady  Sherburne,  you  know,  re- 
sides here.  She  has  that  beautiful  villa  I 
pointed  out  to  you  the  other  day  on  the  other 
side  of  Pozzuoli.  The  dowager  is  legal  guar- 
dian of  the  child ;  and  being  a  stanch  Roman 
Catholic,  chooses  her  to  be  brought  up  at 
Santa  Chiara/^ 

"  You  will  scarcely  believe,^'  said  Helmsley, 
trying  to  force  a  smile,  that,  till  this  moment, 
I  was  not  aware  of  the  fact  of  Lady  Adelaide 
being  a  widow  i^' 

The  St.  Pauls  were  too  well  bred  to  exclaim, 
as  Alexis  Bagot  certainly  would  have  done, 
^^  My  dear  fellow,  where  have  you  lived  all  your 
life  V — The  lady  simply  contented  herself  with 
replying, — "  But  who  told  you  that  she  was  a 
widow  ? '' — 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  181 

"  I  thought  I  understood" — stammered 
Helmsley, — more  embarrassed  than  before. 

''  Lord  Sherburne  is  not  dead,  you  know," 
interposed  Mrs.  St.  Paul.  "  As  his  widow, 
she  would  retain  his  name." 

'^  But  surely  I  have  heard  even  yourself  al- 
lude to  her  wish  of  marrying  Lord  Portumna  ?" 

"  Certainly, — I  am  convinced  that  such  is, 
or  was,  her  intention.'^ 

But  you  say  Lord  Sherburne  is  still  alive  ?" 
My  dear  Sir  William, — where  are  your 
wits  this  morning  ? — Are  you  sporting  with 
my  love  of  gossiping;  or  can  it  be  possible 
that  you  are  in  earnest,  ignorant  of  what  has 
rung  from  one  end  of  Europe  to  the  other; — 
the  life  and  adventures,  or  rather  marriage  and 
divorce  of  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere  ?" 

Sir  William  would  have  given  much  for  the 
power  of  reply.  His  bosom  throbbed  tumul- 
tuously ;  but  he  was  silent. 


(( 


ec 


182  THE   WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

"  She  did  not  altogether,  I  think,  live  a 
twelvemonth  with  her  husband/'  calmly  ob- 
served Mr.  St.  Paul,  with  his  glass  still  raised 
towards  the  surrounding  scenery;  "it  was  a 
most  unlucky  business  !'^ 

"  More  than  unlucky,  I  should  imagine !" 
gasped  Helmsley,  at  length  recovering  his 
powers  of  utterance. 

"  Many  people  thought  so,  at  the  time/' 
said  the  lady.  "  Lady  Adelaide  had  of  course 
her  partisans,  as  a  woman  so  eminently  beau- 
tiful always  must ;  but  people  in  general — ^how- 
ever— it  is  all  histoire  ancienne  now  ! — There 
is  no  use  in  disinterring  old  grievances.  Let 
us  hope  that  her  next  marriage  (whether  with 
Lord  Portumna  or  Mr.  Wroughton),  will  be 
more  auspicious  than  the  first." 

^^  Never !" — cried  Sir  William,  with  indigna- 
tion. "  I  beseech  you  do  not  couple  Gerald 
Wroughton's  name  with  hers :     I  pledge  my 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD.  183 

life  that  my  brother-in-law  will  never  seek  the 
hand  of  a  divorcee" 

^'  In  uniting  their  names,  I  only  follow  the 
example  of  half  Naples/^  said  Mrs.  St.  Paul, 
pettishly. 

"  Who  can  be  as  well  acquainted  as  I  am 
with  the  principles  of  Gerald  Wroughton?'* 
cried  Helmsley.  '^  Had  not  my  brother  been 
as  ignorant  as  myself  of  the  real  position  of 
Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere,  he  would  never 
have  afforded  the  remotest  cause  for  sus- 
picion that " 

"  My  dear,  dear  Sir  William  ?'  again  in- 
terrupted Mrs.  St.  Paul ; — "  do  not  fancy  the 
whole  world  so  blind  as  you  appear  to  have 
been  yourseK !  Why  it  was  when  Dr.  Moor- 
som  was  here  three  years  ago  with  Mr. 
Wroughton,  that  old  Lady  Sherburne  brought 
little  Adelaide  from  England,  to  place  her  at 
Santa  Chiara;  and  I  have  often  heard  Moor- 


184  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

som  mention  how  deeply  his  young  charge, 
then  in  so  delicate  a  state  of  health,  was  affected 
by  the  agitation  into  which  Lady  Adelaide  was 
thrown  by  the  arrival  of  the  child.'^ 

"  All  this  is  so  strange, — so  incomprehen- 
sible to  me  \"  ejaculated  Sir  WiUiam,  after 
a  moment's  pause. 

'^  I  shall  begin  to  think  that  the  English 
coteries  at  Naples,  which  are  reviled  by  the 
Italians  for  their  addiction  to  cancans,  are  less 
guilty  than  I  have  often  supposed  them,^^  ob- 
served Mr.  St.  Paul, — finding  it  impossible  to 
win  back  the  attention  of  Helmsley  to  his 
pedantic  dissertations, — ^^  since  we  are  left  to 
inform  you  of  things  with  which  I  should  have 
supposed  you  familiar  before  you  had  been  eight- 
and-forty  hours  an  inhabitant  of  the  Chiaja.^^ 

"  People  would  as  soon  have  thought  of 
telling  him  that  Queen  Anne  was  dead  V^  said 
Mrs.  St.  Paul,  flippantly. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  185 

"  If  you  wish  to  inform  yourself  more  cir- 
cumstantially/^ added  St.  Paul  gravely,  "you 
had  better  apply  to  Dr.  Moorsom.  Moorsom 
has  been  acquainted  with  the  Colebrookes 
these  twenty  years.  Moorsom  is  an  un- 
prejudiced man,  —  or  perhaps  a  little  par- 
tial in  Lady  Adelaide's  favour.  Dine  with 
us  to-day,  and  he  will  tell  you  the  whole 
story." 

But  Sir  William  was  under  the  necessity  of 
refusing.  He  was  engaged  to  the  Duchess 
d^Ascoli,  to  whom  he  had  been  presented  by 
their  mutual  friend  Sir  Raymond.  Horton 
would  probably  be  there.  He,  at  least,  was 
not  prejudiced  in  favour  of  the  delinquent ;  and 
it  was  from  him  that  Helmsley  determined  to 
learn  the  worst  that  could  be  told. 

He  now  became  as  eager  to  divert  the  con- 
versation of  the  St.  Pauls  from  Lady  Adelaide 
as  he  had  previously  been  to  engage  them  to 
communication ;    and   rejoiced  when   by  dex- 


186     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

terous  inquiries  and  quotations,  he  contrived  to 
concentrate  once  more  the  faculties  of  his  clas- 
sical companion  upon  Sibyls,  Sirens,  and  Queen 
Dido,  instead  of  the  mortal  heroine  of  the  Palazzo 
Balbi. 

But  Mrs.  St.  Paul,  the  moment  she  perceived 
the  gossipry  of  the  morning  to  be  at  an  end, 
grew  languid  and  out  of  spirits;  concealed  a 
yawning  fit  under  her  embroidered  handker- 
chief, and  had  frequent  recourse  to  her  salts 
bottle.  When  her  husband  insisted  upon  drag- 
ging Helmsley  to  explore  the  half-buried  ruins 
of  an  amphitheatre,  her  shoes  were  too  thin 
for  subterraneous  adventures  ;  yet  she  was  per- 
suaded she  should  catch  cold  if  left  to  wait  for 
them  in  the  open  carriage.  She  played  the 
fine  lady,  in  short,  so  much  to  the  purpose,  as 
wholly  to  frustrate  the  object  of  their  expedi- 
tion, and  determine  their  return  to  the  city 
full  an  hour  before  Sir  William  had  flattered 
himseK  lie  should  be  set  at  liberty. 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD.  18? 

It  was  some  relief  that  Gerald  was  absent 
when  he  reached  home.  A  note  left  on  the 
table,  apprized  his  brother  that  he  dined 
early  with  the  Colebrookes.  The  Palazzo  Balbi 
had  bespoken  an  old  Italian  comedy  at  the 
theatre  of  San  Carlino,  and  were  to  attend 
with  a  large  fJarty ;  which  he  invited  Helmsley 
to  join  on  quitting  the  table  of  the  Duchess 
d^Ascoli. 

"  The  Duchess  has  invited  a  few  eminent 
men  expressly  to  meet  you/^  said  Sir  Ray- 
mond, after  Helmsley  had  paid  his  compli- 
ments to  the  handsome  but  somewhat  formal 
mistress  of  one  of  the  finest  and  gloomiest 
mansions  in  Naples.  "  She  is  expecting  Berio 
(a  very  tolerable  poet,  for  a  lord, — except  poor 
Byron's,  few  right  honourable  verses  are  worth 
their  weight  in  chaff !)  Delfico,  the  historian, 
and  my  friend,  Salvaggi, — all  agreeable  men, 
whose  acquaintance  will  do  you  honour.^^ 


188  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD, 

Helmsley  gave  an  involuntary  sigh.  His 
thoughts  were  with  one  whose  acquaintance 
conferred  little  honour  upon  him,  but  infinite 
anguish; — even  upon  the  fallen  angel,  whose 
ascendancy  had  so  unsuspectedly  obtained  the 
mastery  over  his  soul. 

The  tone  of  conversation  during  the  stately 
banquet  which  soon  followed,  was  such  as  at 
any  other  time  might  have  excited  strong  in- 
terest in  the  mind  of  one  who  was  somewhat 
more  of  a  scholar  than  comported  with  his 
vocation    of    country-gentleman ;    and    more 
bent  upon  improvement  than  most  young  men 
of  eight-and-twenty,   who  have   stagnated   in 
the   unstirring    atmosphere    of   domestic    life. 
But  now,  he  could  neither  listen  nor  reply. 
Horton,   who  had  announced  him  as   an   in- 
telligent man,  intent  on  literary  pursuits,  almost 
blushed    for  the   apparent    incapacity   of    his 
friend. 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  189 

It  was  in  vain  that  the  polite  Marchese 
Berio,  hoping  to  stimulate  the  reserved  stran- 
ger to  conversation  through  the  ready  channel 
of  national  pride,  made  handsome  reference 
to  leading  English  authors  of  the  day,  to  our 
reviews, — our  journals, — our  statesmen  and 
historians. 

"  It  surprises  us  untravelled  and  rarely  loco- 
motive   Italians,'^    said    he,    "who    have    no 
means  of  judging  your  countrymen  in  their 
own  country,  where,  doubtless,  they  are  stu- 
died to   the  best   advantage,   to   observe  the 
strange  contrast  between  the  gravity  of  purpose 
of  your  public  men  and  writers  of  European 
reputation,   and  the   class  of  English   travel- 
lers  with   whom   we    become    acquainted.     I 
venture  to  say  this,  sir,  to  yourself,  because 
our  friend,   the  cavalier  Horton  has  apprized 
us  of   the  superiority  of  your  understanding ; 
and  I  am,  therefore,  convinced  you  will  agree 


190  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

with  me,  that  the  conversation  of  the  English 
circles  in  Naples  is  more  flighty  and  insipid, 
and  their  pursuits  more  trivial,  than  can  well 
be  accounted  for.  It  is  true,  they  are  formed 
of  the  noble  and  the  wealthy,  whose  habits  are 
necessarily  frivolous.  But  these  very  classes 
have  furnished  your  greatest  writers  and  great- 
est men.'^ 

"  Our  great  men  and  writers  are  too  busy 
in  these  stirring  times  at  home,  my  dear  mar- 
quis, to  afford  you  an  opportunity  of  judging 
of  their  colloquial  qualifications,^^  cried  Sir 
Raymond,  perceiving  that  Helmsley  was  un- 
prepared with  an  answer.  ^^  Be  so  amiable  as 
not  to  judge  us  after  the  cub-lords,  dandies, 
and  twaddlers,  whom  your  climate  and  your 
San  Carlos  attract  hither  to  flutter  in  the 
winter  sunshine !" 

"  My  dear  friend,^^  protested  the  Neapohtan, 
"  we  have  had  here,  within  these  last  few  years, 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  191 

several  of  your  great  modern  authors;  cold, 
silent  men,  who  seemed  to  sulk  with  us  for  not 
speaking  their  language,  while  they  deUver 
themselves  in  the  French  of  a  laquais  de  place ! 
Gell,  Mathias,  and  Landor,  I  admit  to  be 
exceptions;  but  these  men  are  rather  Italian 
than  English.  Your  straight-from-London 
EngUshman  never  appears  to  be  in  earnest; 
and  as  to  the  ordinary  run  of  their  lovely  wives 
and  daughters,  they  draw  up  in  alarm  if  one 
ventures  to  ask  them  a  rational  question,  and 
are  to  be  propitiated  only  by  some  idle  jest. 
They  never  converse  like  Frenchwomen,  they 
never  argue  like  Italians  ;  their  portion  of 
dialogue  invariably  consists  in  exaggerated 
affirmation,  or  negation.  Yet  what  wonderful 
women  you  have  in  your  country ! — One  of 
the  first  astronomers,  and  one  of  the  first 
political  economists  in  the  world  ! '' — 

"  We  choose  to  keep  them  there,  lest  you 


192  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

should  turn  their  heads  by  flattery  \"  said 
Horton,  laughing. 

"  But  you  forget,  my  dear  marquis,  the 
charming  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere/^  interposed 
the  Duchess  d^Ascoli,  fearing  from  the  uneasy 
look  of  Helmsley,  that  he  resented  the  dis- 
paraging manner  in  which  his  countrymen  and 
women  were  alluded  to. 

^^  No — I  have  not  forgotten  her/^  replied 
the  old  man.  "  She,  I  grant  you,  possesses  a 
thousand  graces  of  address.  She  can  assume 
any  tone  of  conversation,  grave  or  gay,  lively 
or  severe.  But  she  does  assume  it — it  is  plain 
to  every  nice  observer  that  she  assumes  it.  I 
have  no  conjecture  what  may  be  the  real 
complexion  of  her  character.^' 

^^  That  of  a  mere  woman  of  the  world ! '' 
observed  Horton,  in  an  under  tone.  "  Any 
thing  to  serve  the  momentary  aim  she  has 
in  view.^' 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  193 

"  Admit,  at  all  events/^  observed  the  duchess, 
touched  for  the  honour  of  her  sex,  or  conscious 
perhaps  that  she  stood  accountant  for  as  great 
a  sin, — ^^  that  she  can  converse, — that  she  has 
both  intelligence  and  information  ? " 

"  Like  most  women  of  her  rank  in  life,  her 
information  has  been  orally  acquired.  She 
knows  every  thing  that  is  to  be  learned  from 
conversation,  —  nothing  that  is  to  be  learned 
from  books;  and  I  have  observed  that  know- 
ledge attained  from  the  lips  of  others,  passed 
out  of  our  own  without  producing  much 
impression  on  the  mind.  On  what  we  read, 
we  reflect;  of  what  we  hear,  we  talk.  I 
conceive  Lady  Adelaide  to  be  altogether  su- 
perficial.'^ 

"  Come,  come,  you  are  hypercritical, '^  ex- 
claimed the  duchess.  "  Between  over-reserve 
and  over-loquacity,  you  are,  indeed,  hard  to 
please." 

VOL.  I.  K 


194     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

"  Not  hard  to  please,  but  hard  to  be  ex- 
cited to  enthusiasm/^  replied  the  old  man,  in 
self-vindication.  ^^  I  admire  Lady  Adelaide  as 
an  ornament  to  society ;  but  when  you  ask  me 
to  regard  her  with  the  adoration  she  is  accus- 
tomed to  command  among  the  English,  I  an- 
swer that  I  cannot  adore  what  I  do  not  beheve 
to  be  genuine.  Were  your  idol  what  she 
appears, — were  her  words  as  sincere  as  they 
are  agreeable, — she  would  be  an  enchantress 
indeed  ! — But  I  hear  her  talk  scandal,  toilet, 
and  liberalism,  with  Madame  De  la  Chuchot- 
terie, — ^high  toryism  and  duro  di  schiena  with 
Madame  Von  Hardenstein: — saintship  with 
Miladi  Darling,  and  sinnership  with  Milor 
Portumna. — ^What  am  I  to  think  ?  —  which 
of  all  these  am  T  to  believe  her  vein  of  na- 
ture?'' 

^^  Believe  her  to  be — 

«  Every  thing  by  turns,  and  nothing  long ! " 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  195 

said  Sir  Raymond ;  ^^  and  you  will  be  nearer 
the  truth/' 

"  Then,  with  your  forgiveness,  I  could  as 
soon  bestow  my  esteem  on  a  weathercock ! '' 

Helmsley  was  almost  tempted  to  take  up 
the  cause  of  Lady  Adelaide;  but  the  shrewd 
glances  emanating  from  the  expressive  eye  of 
his  diplomatic  friend  luckily  restrained  him 
from  stimulating  opposition  by  defence.  He 
determined,  however,  to  seize  the  earliest  op- 
portunity of  referring  his  incertitudes  of  the 
morning  to  Sir  Raymond;  and  having  con- 
ducted the  duchess  from  the  dinuig-room  to 
the  stately  fauteuil  of  her  saloon,  justified 
the  charge  so  often  brought  on  the  continent 
against  English  gentlemen,  of  button-holding  in 
a  corner  apart  from  the  rest  of  the  company. 

"  1  want  you,  my  dear  Horton,  to  e;xplain 
to  me,''  whispered  he,  as  soon  as  he  had  drawn 
his  friend  out  of  hearing  of  the  others,  ^^the 

K  2 


196     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

particulars  of  an  absurd  story  I  heard  this 
morning  from  Mrs.  St.  Paul,  about  the  mar- 
riage and  divorce  of  '' 

'^  Not  Lady  Adelaide,  again  ?^  cried  Horton, 
laughing.     ^^  Surely  she  afforded  pdtiire  enough 
for    mauvaises   langues,    during   dinner?     But, 
with  respect  to  the  affair  of  her  foolish  match, 
I  fancy  the  wrongs  of  the  business  are  better 
known   than   its   rights.      She    married   Lord 
Sherburne  at  sixteen,  to  gratify  her  father,  as 
she  says, — to   gratify   her  love  of    independ- 
ence, as  I  believe;  and,  at  eighteen,  brought 
evidence  before  Doctors'  Commons  sufficient 
to     set    herself    at    still   greater   liberty,    and 
consign    her    monster  for   life    to    a    lunatic 
asylum." 

"  The  divorce  proceeded,  then,  from  no  im- 
propriety of  conduct  ?'' 

Impropriety,   my  dear  fellow,  is  ajvague 


(e 


term.     Though  all  the  world  considered  Lord 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  197 

Colebrooke  justified  in  securing  his  daughter 

from  the  brutality  of  a  madman^  many  people 

thought  it   a   suspicious  circumstance   that   a 

man  so  knowing  as  his  lordship  should  have 

suffered  his  daughter  to  become  the  wife  of  a 

Roman  Catholic  peer  by  the  mere  ceremonial 

of  the  Protestant  church,  so  as  to  leave  her  the 

possibility  of  divorce.     The  Sherburnes,   you 

see,  originally  discountenanced  the  match,  but 

left  the  poor  fellow  to  his  own   devices;    so 

that,  though  married  according  to  the  law  of  the 

land,  the  solemnization  was  nothing  to  him  as 

a  case  of  conscience.      Altogether,  there  was 

something  louche  in  the  business/^ 

"  But  had  not  the  marriage  been  valid,  there 

could  have  been  no  legal  divorce  ?"  argued  Sir 

William. 

"  In  these  sharp  quiddets  of  the  law, 
Good  faith,  I  am  no  wiser  than  a  daw," 


198  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

replied  Sir  Raymond.  "  I  only  know  that  the 
child  is  to  inherit,  and  that  Lady  Adelaide  is 
at  liberty  to  marry  again  whenever  she  shall 
hit  upon  her  dupe.  And  now  let  us  join  the 
duchess  ;  who  will  fancy  us  to  be  plotting  trea- 
son against  the  state,  if  we  hide  in  corners  and 
do  not  take  her  into  our  confidence." 

Luckily  the  custom  of  the  country  sanc- 
tioned Sir  William's  early  escape  from  the 
circle;  for,  with  his  head  and  heart  pre-en- 
grossed,  it  would  have  been  difficult  to  justify 
the  praises  of  his  understanding  by  which  his 
friend  Sir  Raymond  had  obtained  access  for 
him  into  the  somewhat  pedantic  circle  of  the 
Duchess  d'Ascoli.  He  took  his  leave,  in- 
different to  the  impression  his  incoherence 
and  unsociability  might  leave  on  men,  of 
whom,  a  few  months  before,  he  would  have 
felt    proud    to   cultivate    the    good    opinion; 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  199 

and  arrived  at  home  in  time  to  acquire^  by 
two  hours  of  restlessness  and  self-reproach, 
the  composure  indispensable  to  the  delivery 
of  his  remonstrances  to  his  brother-in-law. 


200  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


Dans  la  conversation,  chose  si  superflue  et  si  necessaire, 
les  uns  ne  disent  pas  toujours  ce  qu'ils  savent,  les  autres 
ne  savent  pas  toujours  ce  qu'ils  disent. 

BOUFFLERS. 

"  Aha  ! — at  home  so  soon }"  cried  Gerald, 
when,  after  having  been  long  and  impatiently 
expected,  he  entered  the  drawing-room.  "  I 
took  it  into  my  head  that  Horton  would  carry 
you  off  to  his  den,  and  tie  you  down  in  argu- 
ment as  he  has  often  done  my  less  worthy  self, 
till  the  witching  time  of  night/^ 

^^  I  left  the  duchesses  before  him.     I  wished 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  201 

to  be  here  in  time  to, — I  was  anxious  in  short 
to— ^^ 

"  Is  any  thing  the  matter  ?"— cried  Gerald, 
noticing  the  distempered  look  of  the  usually- 
placid  Helmsley.  "  Have  you  bad  news  from 
England  ?^^  he  added,  with  a  glance  towards 
the  half- open  letter,  which  lay  beside  Sir 
William  on  the  table. 

^^  I  have  heard  nothing  likely  to  be  new 
to  2/021,"  replied  Helmsley,  with  growing  agi- 
tation. "  Your  sister  is  anxious  about  you, 
Gerald.  He?'  anxiety  has  directed  my  own 
attention  to  things  which  might  otherwise  have 
escaped  my  notice.  Read  this  \''  he  continued, 
placing  Miss  Wroughton^s  letter  in  her  brother^s 
hand, — "  and  then,  if  you  can,  relieve  the  agita- 
tion of  my  mind.^^ 

Wroughton,  seizing  the  letter,  hurried  over 
the  lines  to  which  the  finger  of  Helmsley  di- 

K   3 


202     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

rected  his  attention.  It  afforded  some  comfort 
to  Sir  William  to  observe  that,  as  he  read,  the 
colour  with  which  his  cheeks  had  been  moment- 
arily flushed,  gradually  faded ;  and  that,  as  his 
mind  became  enlightened,  it  was  restored  to 
composure. 

"  He  knows  the  worst,  now,"  thought 
Helmsley.  "  He  is  aware  of  Emma's  anxieties, 
and  does  not  blench.^' 

Gerald  returned  the  letter  without  a  syllable 
of  comment. 

''  And  what  am  I  to  say  to  your  sister  in 
reply?''  demanded  Helmsley,  after  waiting  a 
few  minutes,  in  hopes  of  some  communication 
from  his  brother-inJaw. 

"  I  'will  write  to  Emma  myself  by  the  next 
courier,"  said  the  young  man,  in  a  grave 
manner. 

"  To  myself,  then,  you  consider  all  explana- 


THE    WOMAN    OP   THE    WORLD.  203 

tion  unnecessary  ?^^ — cried  Helmsley,  stung  to 
the  quick  by  this  ungracious  mode  of  excluding 
him  from  the  family  council. 

"  My  dear  Helmsley,  what  could  I  possibly 
tell  you  on  the  subject  of  which  you  are  not 
aware  already  ?" — said  Wroughton,  with  some 
degree  of  irritation. 

^^  I  am  aware  of  nothing ! — Had  it  been  left 
to  me  to  answer  Emma's  letter,  I  could  only 
have  replied  that  your  feelings  towards  Lady 
Adelaide  de  Vere  or  hers  towards  yourself,  are 
as  much  a  mystery  to  me  as  if  I  had  never 
seen  you  in  each  other's  company." 

"  Impossible !"  cried  Gerald.  "  No  person 
can  have  been  my  associate  as  you  have  been, 
without  noticing  my  unconcealed  attachment* 
I  have  made  no  secret  of  my  sentiments.  I 
concluded  that  motives  of  delicacy  alone  pre- 
vented you  from  expressing  your  opinion  on 
the  subject.     I  concluded  you  saw  as  well  as 


204     THE  WOMAN  OP  THE  WORLD. 

the  rest  of  the  worlds  the  whole  extent  of  my 
passion  I" — 

"Motives  of  deHcacy !" — exclaimed  Helmsley. 
Had  I  been  really  aware  of  your  infatuation, 
would  any  earthly  consideration  have  prevented 
me  from  plucking  you  back,  when  I  saw  you 
rushing   upon    destruction  ?  —  No,    Gerald  ! — 
Either  by  design  or  indiflference  on  your  part, 
I  have  been  kept  wholly  in  the  dark ! — Had 
I  guessed — had  I    dreamed — that  you   enter- 
tained serious  projects  concerning  this  woman, 
I  should   have   inquired — should  have  inves- 
tigated.    But    believing  that,  were  you   seri- 
ously attached,  your  guardian  and  friefid  would 
be  one  of  the  first  persons  taken   into  your 
confidence,  I  left  matters  so  entirely  to  chance, <* 
that  it  was  only  this  morning  I  became  apprized 
of  facts  of  which  I  cannot  but  suppose  y3*i  still 
ignorant, — the  marriage  and   divorce  of  Lady 
Adelaide/^ 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  205 

"  I  am  aware  of  every  incident  of  her  life/^ 
replied  Wroughton,  calmly. 

^'  And  you  would  carry  back  as  your  wife 
to  Wroughton  Hall,  to  be  the  protectress  of 
your  sister  and  the  successor  of  your  mother, 
a  woman  branded  with  suspicions  of  the  most 
detestable  nature? — You  would  take  to  your 
bosom  the  mother  of  a  child  whose  father  i» 
yet  alive  ? — A  woman  haunted  by  disgraceful 
reminiscences — a  woman  who  has  figured  before 
the  tribunals  of  the  country  ?  ^' 

"  At  present,  I  have  made  no  engagement  to 
marry  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere/^  replied  Gerald, 
startled  but  not  convinced  by  the  unwonted 
impetuosity  of  his  brother-in-law.  '^  If  any 
thing  could  hurry  me  into  precipitate  proposals, 
it  would  be  to  hear  her  character  unjustly 
aspersed  by  my  family/^ 

Sir  William  was  silent. 

*^  All  that  can  be  urged  against  her,  /  know !" 


206  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD. 

resumed  Gerald.  "With  all  the  calumnies 
circulated  concerning  her,  I  am  also  acquainted. 
I  have  heard  them  from  others, — I  have  heard 
them  from  herself.  Before  I  ever  saw  her  face, 
the  history  of  her  unfortunate  marriage  was 
recounted  to  me  as  a  matter  of  conversation  by 
Dr.  Moorsom,  who  was  intimately  acquainted 
with  Lord  Sherburne,  and  absolves  her  wholly. 
Nevertheless,  I  owe  it  to  you  to  avow  that  a 
certain  repugnance  arising  from  that  connexion, 
has  alone  prevented  my  becoming  her  declared 
lover.^^ 

"  How  !" — exclaimed  Helmsley.  "  You  have 
made  no  declaration  of  your  sentiments  ? — You 
are  still  at  liberty  to '' 

"  At  Hberty,  according  to  the  world^s  decrees, 
to  quit  Naples  to-morrow  without  further  ex- 
planation, and  withdraw  myself  uncompromised 
from  the  society  of  Lord  Colebrooke^s  family. 
But  my  own  views  on  such  points  do  not  coin- 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  20? 

cide  with  those  of  the  world.  Though  I  have 
made  no  professions  of  attachment,  my  looks, 
my  manners,  my  involuntary  homage,  can  have 
left  no  doubt  in  Lady  Adelaide's  mind  of  the 
state  of  my  feelings.  And  if  Lord  Colebrooke 
permits  me  to  spend  half  my  time  in  his  house 
by  the  side  of  the  most  beautiful  and  most 
attractive  of  women,  engaging  her  regard  and 
luxuriating  in  her  smiles,  it  is  because  he  re- 
lies on  the  honour  of  an  English  gentleman 
not  to  excite  expectations  he  has  no  intention 
of  fulfilUng.'^ 

"  Lady  Adelaide,  then,  returns  your  affec- 
tion?''— 

*^  I  have  no  right  to  answer  in  the  affirma- 
tive since  I  have  never  sought  the  privilege  of 
aspiring  to  her  love.  But  to  you— my  nearest 
connexion — I  will  not  hesitate  to  own  that  did 

I  suppose  her  indiiFerent,  I  should  not  devote 
4 


208  THE   WOMAN  OP   THE   WORLD. 

my  life  to  her,  or  labour  to  overcome  the  pre- 
judices created  by  her  unhappy  position/' 

^^  Which  means  that  you  know  her  heart  to 
be  your  own !  '^ 

'^  I  am  not  such  a  coxcomb  as  either  to  say 
or  think  it  V^  cried  Gerald,  with  indignation. 
^^  No  man  has  a  right  to  pretend  to  such  a  con- 
cession, who  holds  back  for  the  indulgence  of 
his  scruples.  At  the  period  of  my  first  visit 
to  Naples,  from  the  very  first  week  of  my 
acquaintance  with  her,  I  became  attached  to 
Lady  Adelaide.  The  circumstances  connected 
with  her  marriage  were  then  more  fresh  in 
public  recollection  than  now.  I  heard  her 
every  where  blamed,  every  where  reviled.  My 
friends  and  associates  derided  the  idea  of  any 
man  intending  to  make  her  his  wife.  It  was 
this  scorn  and  contempt,  perhaps,  which  at 
that  time  helped  to  remind  me  that  I  was  two 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  209 

years  younger  than  the  object  of  my  attach- 
ment; and  I  returned  to  England,  determined 
to  banish  her  from  my  mind  for  ever ! " 

Helmsley,  who  had  been  hitherto  seated,  rose, 
and  involuntarily  paced  the  room.  Though 
striving  to  recall  to  mind  the  circumstances 
connected  with  Gerald's  arrival  in  England, 
he  could  remember  nothing  likely  to  have 
excited  the  suspicions  of  Wroughton^s  sisters 
that  he  rejoined  them  with  an  engaged  heart. 

^^  I  need  not  remind  you,  my  dear  brother,^^ 
resumed  Gerald,  '^  that  family  events  of  an 
engrossing  nature,  left  me  little  leisure  for 
recurrence  to  the  past.  The  illness  and  loss 
of  our  dear  Marcella  absorbed  every  thought 
of  my  mind ;  and  when  T  returned  to  the  busy 
world,  the  influence  of  Italy  and  Adelaide  was 
so  far  suspended  that  I  had  sufiicient  self-com- 
mand to  make  no  inquiries  respecting  the 
family  of  Lord  Colebrooke.     I  knew  them  to 


210  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

be  in  England, — nay,  settled  within  forty  miles 
of  Wroughton  HaU,  yet  made  no  effort  for  the 
renewal  of  onr  acquaintance.  Still,  I  hankered 
after  Italy.  The  climate,  I  fancied  indispensa- 
ble to  my  health ; — the  associations — but  why 
dilate  upon  it  all! — I  pledge  you  my  word 
that  in  coming  hither,  I  knew  not  she  would 
be  here.  AU  I  wished  was  to  inhabit  the  spot 
where  she  had  been, — where  I  had  last  beheld 
her, — last  luxuriated  in  transitory  visions  of 
happiness.  The  rest,  you  know ! — To  have 
dashed  away  the  ohve-branch  extended  towards 
me,  would  have  been  sterner  virtue  than  is 
to  be  expected  of  my  age  and  nature.  I 
accepted  the  civihties  of  Lord  Colebrooke, — 
I  revelled  once  more  in  the  smiles  of  Lady 
Adelaide, — and  became  once  more,  and  more 
than  ever,  her  slave.^^ 

"  And  you  intend  to  marry  her  ?  ^^  demanded 
Helmsley,  in  a  hoarse  voice. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  211 

"  At  the  first  renewal  of  our  intimacy,  I 
heard  and  fancied  that  Lord  Portumna  was  her 
accepted  lover.  I  was  soon  undeceived.  Por- 
tumna never  has  been, — never  has  sought  to 
be  more  than  the  admiring  friend  of  Lady  Ade- 
laide. Reassured  on  this  point — (if  I  can  say 
reassured,  when  in  fact  it  was  the  supposition 
of  her  engagement  which  seemed  to  leave  me 
at  hberty  to  return  to  the  house,)  I  gave  my- 
self up  to  my  feelings.  You,  my  dear  Helms- 
ley,  are  a  philosopher.  You  are  one  who, 
having  loved  with  all  the  sobriety  of  domestic 
tenderness,  are  insensible  to  every  wilder  pas- 
sion. But  ask  any  other  breathing  man,  whe- 
ther it  were  possible  to  live  in  yearly,  hourly, 
familiar  intercourse  with  a  woman  so  exqui- 
sitely gifted,  and  restrain  the  impetuosity  of  a 
passion  beyond — oh  !  far  beyond  the  curb  of 
human  reason  !  '^ — 

^*  I  never  ventured  to  doubt  the  attractions 


212  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

of  Lady  Adelaide  de  Yere"  said  Sir  William, 
with  a  guilty  thrill. 

^^  Give  me  credit,  then,  for  some  degree  of 
moderation,  when  I  assure  you  that  I  have 
strictly  adhered  to  my  resolution  of  watching 
every  word,  look,  gesture, — and  examining  ^\4th 
scrupulous  severity  the  opinions  of  the  world 
as  justified  by  her  conduct.  Had  I  found  her 
faulty  in  a  single  particular,  had  I  on  any  one 
occasion  detected  the  shghtest  indication  of 
levity  in  her  mind  or  manners,  as  God  sees 
my  heart,  I  would  have  given  her  up  for  ever ! 
— But  all  in  her  nature  is  bright  and  hea- 
venly as  the  expression  of  her  countenance  ; 
and— ^^ 

^^  And  you  are  now  resolved  to  make  her  the 
offer  of  your  hand !"  again  interrupted  Helmsley. 

"  I  am  ! — but  the  period  of  probation  is 
not  over.  We  have  always  agreed,  my  dear 
Helmsley,  to  return  to  England  the  first  week 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  213 

in  May.  Lord  Colebrooke,  who  will  leave 
Naples  about  the  same  period^  wishes  that  we 
should  travel  together;  and  it  will  depend 
upon  the  manner  in  which  my  proposals  are 
received,  on  the  eve  of  our  departure,  whether 
I  accede  to  his  request." 

"  We  have  two  months  reprieve  then  before 
us  V — was  the  involuntary  exclamation  of  Sir 
WilUam.  "  May  I  hold  you  pledged,  my  dear 
brother,  that  during  that  interval  you  will  at- 
tempt no  further  explanation, — no  further  en- 
gagement ?" — 

"  Here  is  my  hand  upon  it  V  said  Gerald. 
'^  You  have  every  right  to  exert  your  influ- 
ence over  my  judgment.  The  more  you 
frequent  the  society  so  dear  to  me,  the 
better  satisfied  I  shall  be  that  you  act  without 
prejudice,  and  are  unbiassed  by  the  calumnies 
of  the  world.  Lady  Adelaide  highly  esteems 
you,  and  will  rejoice  to  welcome  you  on  more 
intimate  terms  to  her  fireside.     If  I  do  not  yet 


214     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

require  you  to  love  her  as  a  sister,  promise 
me  at  least  that  you  will  view  her  with  the 
indulgence  of  a  friend  ?^^ 

Sir  William  found  it  impossible  to  utter  a 
syllable  in  reply.  He  stiU  held  in  his  the  hand 
extended  to  him  by  Gerald ;  and  his  own  trem- 
bled so  violently  that,  had  not  Wroughton  at- 
tributed to  the  warmth  of  fraternal  affection 
the  uncontrollable  emotion  by  which  he  was 
agitated,  suspicions  of  the  truth  must  necessarily 
have  arisen  in  the  mind  of  the  young  lover. 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  215 


CHAPTER  XV. 


To  court  the  great  ones,  and  to  soothe  their  pride, 
Seems  a  sweet  task — to  those  that  never  tried. 

Horace. 

There  are  three  classes  of  men  morally  dis- 
tinguishable in  that  order  of  society  which, 
by  the  courtesy  of  modem  times,  is  termed 
The  Order ; — those  who  live  to  act,  those  who 
live  to  read,  and  those  who  live  to  talk. 

Lord  Colebrooke  was  one  of  the  latter. 
He  was  exclusively  a  man  of  the  world.  His 
duties  as  a  legislator  were  fulfilled  by  sitting 
half  an  hour  in  the  House  previous  to  any 
great   division,    and   talking  over  the   debate 


216  THE   WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

during  the  whole  preceding  and  succeeding 
days  at  his  club  and  dinner  party.  A  saun- 
ter on  horseback  in  the  afternoon,  and  a  rubber 
or  two  at  midnight,  fiUed  up  the  measure  of 
his  London  existence.  Having  Uved  prodi- 
gally from  youth  to  middle  age,  talking  of 
retrenchments  which  he  had  not  the  energy  to 
put  in  practice,  he  was  now  forced  to  econo- 
mize his  way  down  the  hill  of  life  : — the  extra- 
vagance of  his  eldest  son  superadded  to  his 
own,  having  heaped  Ossa  on  Pelion  in  the 
accumulation  of  the  debts  of  the  family. 

His  lordship  accordingly  drew  in.  He  now 
played  twenty  guineas  on  the  rubber,  instead 
of  fifty;  and  had  engaged  a  chef  at  two  hundred 
per  annum,  instead  of  four.  But  the  chief 
indication  of  Lord  Colebrooke^s  pauperism  was 
the  necessity  of  spending  his  winters  on  the 
continent,  to  escape  the  onerous  hospitalities 
of  Colebrooke  Castle  or  Woodland^s  Lodge; — 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  21? 

and  the  worst  privation  he  experienced  in 
these  annual  banishments,  the  loss  of  that  ever- 
flo\\ing  course  of  small-talk,  which  enlivens 
the  revolving  coteries  of  the  country-house,  the 
star-gazing  circles  of  Brighton,  or  the  select 
vestries  of  St.  James's  Street  and  Pall-Mall. — 
What  cared  he  for  the  on-dits  of  Naples? 
With  the  exception  of  Lord  Portumna,  there 
was  not  a  soul  in  the  place  to  sympathize  with 
his  curiosity  respecting  vacant  regiments  or 
vacant  mitres, — the  disposal  of  the  ribbon  of 
some  expiring  peer, — the  ayes  of  a  majority,  or 
the  shufflings  of  the  back  stairs ! — There  was 
no  one  at  Naples  who  played  his  stake ;  there  was 
no  one  at  Naples  who  could  converse  with  him 
in  the  sort  of  telegraphic  London  jargon,  which 
communicates,  from  one  noble  signal-post  to 
another,  the  small  gossip  of  the  great  world; 
and  it  was  a  toil  to  talk  to  people  of  the  lower 

VOL.  I.  L 


218     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

world,  for  whose  dulness  it  was  necessary  to 
cross  his  Ts,  and  place  a  dot  over  every  I ! — 

With  the  inanity  of  young  Wroughton 
indeed  he  bore  patiently,  in  the  hope  that 
he  was  to  become  the  husband  of  his  daugh- 
ter; but  it  was  a  sad  sacrifice  to  relinquish 
the  society  of  Lord  Portumna,  —  whom  he 
had  tact  enough  to  perceive  must  be  a  less 
frequent  guest  at  the  Palazzo  Balbi,  to  give 
free  scope  to  the  pretensions  of  the  esquire  of 
Wroughton  Hall. 

^'  We  have  had  an  amazing  dull  winter  here  \" 
observed  his  lordship  to  Sir  William  Helmsley, 
while  waiting  to  make  up  his  nightly  rubber 
on  the  evening  succeeding  the  explanation 
between  the  two  brothers.  ^^  I  was  saying  to 
my  daughter  this  morning,  that  Naples  is  no 
longer  the  place  I  remember  it.^^ 

"  To  me,  it  has  all  the  charm  of  novelty,'^ 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  219 

answered  Helmsley.  ^'  I  usually  pass  my  winters 
at  my  country  place ;  and  have  rather  to  blame 
the  too  much  than  too  little  society  I  find  as- 
sembled here." 

Lord  Colebrooke  slightly  shrugged  his 
shoulders.  ^^  But  we  have  positively  nobody !" 
said  he.  "  Some  years  ago,  there  was  so  little 
stirring  in  England  that  people  came  to  the 
continent  for  two  or  three  years,  and  one  of 
their  seasons  was  necessarily  spent  here.  Now, 
every  man  must  be  at  his  post, — every  man 
must  have  his  hand  on  the  oar ;  and  they  have 
only  time  to  run  over  to  Paris,  and  back  for  the 
meeting  of  parliament.  Americans  and  English 
nonentities  are  the  only  persons  who  have 
leisure  for  a  winter  at  Naples." 

^'  We  have  some  Americans  just  arrived," 
interposed  Wroughton,  alarmed  lest  his  grave 
brother  should  be  disgusted  by  the  hoary  levity 
of  his  future  father-in-law,  ^^  who  write  them- 

L  2 


220  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

selves  down  somebodies.  Moorsom,  my  dear 
friend^  if  you  can  take  your  spectacles  off 
the  Diario,  pray  come  and  tell  us  what  the 
Schrams  are  going  to  do  for  our  entertain- 
ment !" 

''  Hire  Vesuvius  for  the  centre  of  the  supper- 
table,  and  clothe  a  regiment  of  lazzaroni  to 
officiate  as  their  guard  of  honour/^  replied 
the  doctor,  with  becoming  gravity. 

"  Why  exaggerate  V — cried  Mrs.  St.  Paul, 
stopping  short  in  the  midst  of  her  gentle  prat- 
tlings  with  Lady  Adelaide.  "  Why  try  to  make 
them  more  ridiculous  than  they  are  ? — I  am  sure 
they  are  as  absurd  as  heart  can  wish  V' 

'^  They  appear  to  be  goodnatured  people/' 
remonstrated  the  mild  voice  of  Lady  Adelaide. 
"  We  must  forgive  some  outbreak  of  vanity  in 
people  who  have  attained  sudden  wealth,  and 
possess  limited  opportunities  for  display.  All 
they  do  by  way  of  attracting  our  attention,  is  to 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  221 

spend.      Surely  they  might  find  more  objec- 
tionable modes  of  obtaining  notoriety  I'' 

^'  Certainly,  certainly !"  cried  Moorsom,  rea- 
dily backing  the  fair  apologist ;  "  and  if  they 
limited  their  prodigality  to  buying  up  cabinets 
of  modern  antiques,  or  the  copies  of  our  friend 
Princess  Stradalla  for  Raphael  and  Correggio, 
there  would  be  no  great  harm  done.  But  un- 
luckily there  is  a  wondrous  power  of  sympathy  in 
vanity  and  folly.  These  Tompkinson-Longmans, 
or  Longman-Tompkinsons,  for  instance,  have 
been  as  quiet  as  mice  among  persons  with 
whom  it  was  impossible  to  contend  in  rivalship, 
inasmuch  as  they  put  their  trust  neither  m 
chariots  nor  in  horsemen,  nor  parks,  nor  man- 
sions. But  the  moment  the  Schrams  set  up 
their  golden  image,  Mrs.  Carlton  Terrace's 
idolatry  waxed  hot  within  her;  and  she  has 
ordered  a  set  of  new  liveries,  and  is  going  to 
send  out  cards  for  a  bal  masque,  or  costume,  or 
a  carrousel,  or  some  tomfoolery  or  other.'' 


222  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

"  How  ill-judged !"  observed  Lady  Adelaide. 
"  How  uncalled  for !  How  far  wiser  would  it 
be,  if  travellers  left  the  toil  of  costly  entertain- 
ments to  their  ambassadors.  The  continental 
nobility,  in  Italy  more  especially,  are  unable  to 
compete  with  us  on  equal  terms  ;  and  it  is  the 
splendour  of  our  dress,  equipages,  and  fetes, 
which  determines  them  to  close  their  doors 
against  us.  It  is  too  mortifying  to  their  na- 
tional pride  to  be  constantly  eclipsed  on  their 
own  territories.^^ 

^  D'autant  plus^  observed  Dr.  Moorsom, 
"  that  they  reaUy  have  something  to  offer  in 
exchange  for  the  pomp  and  show  in  which  they 
are  deficient; — an  easy,  well-bred  tone  of  society, 
never  very  exciting,  I  admit,  but  calculated  to 
spread  an  agreeable  varnish  over  the  rough 
surface  of  human  life.^^ 

"  The  natural  consequence  of  a  self-concen- 
trated aristocracy  !^'  said  Lord  Colebrocke, 
"  which    admits    no    intrusion    of    extraneous 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  22 


\L\LO 


members.  I  remember  the  days  of  the  Petit 
Trianon  and  Versailles,  when  society  in  Paris 
resembled  the  society  of  to-day  in  Naples, 
The  utmost  strictness  of  caste  prevented  the 
jealousies,  competitions,  and  mutual  contempts, 
arising  between  a  wealthy  bourgeoisie  and  im- 
poverished nobihty," 

"  Some  sacrifice  of  wit,  gaiety,  and  intelli- 
gence, being  compounded  for  in  both  instances, 
to  secure  a  level  and  harmonious  texture,'^ 
interposed  Dr.  Moorsom. 

^'  No  I''  persisted  Lord  Colebrooke.  ^^  / 
perceive  no  sacrifice  on  any  side.  The  re- 
serve of  Enghshmen  (which  prevails  rather  in 
the  second  than  the  first  class  of  society),  is 
attributable  to  the  promiscuous  nature  of 
our  associations.  The  attainability  of  pubhc 
distinctions  by  men  of  talent  of  any  class,  and 
the  extraordinary  accumulation  of  mercantile 


224     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

wealth,  necessarily  destroy  the  exclusivism 
of  the  English  aristocracy ;  and  our  uncertainty 
concerning  the  origin  and  habits  of  those  with 
whom  we  are  brought  into  contact,  by  occa- 
sioning a  continual  apprehension  of  wounding 
the  self-love  of  others  by  some  casual  remark, 
produces  consequent  reserve.  Placed  between 
two  strangers  at  the  table  of  one  of  my  country 
neighbours,  I  discover  that  one  is  a  legal  digni- 
tary, the  other  a  meml:)er  of  parliament.  How 
am  I  to  guess  (when  indulging  in  a  diatribe 
on  the  peculations  of  servants),  that  my  friend 
on  the  right  hand  is  the  son  of  my  father's 
butler ;  or  (when  discussing  the  abohtion  of 
slavery)  that  my  friend  to  the  left  is  a  sugar- 
baker  in  Bucklersbury  ?  I  speak  daggers, 
most  unintentionally,  to  both;  and  leave  on 
their  minds  an  impression  that  I  am  an  inso- 
lent, ignorant  brute. — Henceforth,  there  is  war 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  225 

between  us. — I  have  bruised  their  head,  and 
they  will  take  the  first  opportunity  to  fasten 
upon  my  heel," 

"  True ;  but  posterity  will  be  the  gainer. 
Your  lordship's  son,  and  the  son  of  the  so- 
licitor-general, will  be  nearly  on  a  par ;  their 
sons,  perhaps," — the  doctor  paused.  It  was 
not  for  him  to  prophetize  that  in  the  third 
generation,  the  balance  of  the  scales  might  be 
reversed.  Lady  Adelaide,  guessing  his  embar- 
rassment, came  to  his  assistance. 

*^  An  apprehension  of  being  misunderstood 
certainly  keeps  people  silent,  who  would  other- 
wise cheerfully  converse,^'  said  she  ;  ^^  and  an 
universal  language  is  impossible  among  persons 
of  opposite  views  and  incompatible  situations. 
In  England,  how  much  stress  is  laid  upon  man- 
ners ; — how  apt  people  are  to  arraign  others  as 
vulgar  and  ill-bred  !  —  Here,  one  never  hears  the 
whisper  of  such  an  accusation,  because  every 

L  3 


226  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

one  in  society  is  on  a  par  ;  every  one  has  been 
brought  up  on  the  same  system^  in  the  same 
habits  of  life.  All  have  definite  places,  all  ad- 
here to  them.  Pretension  or  hauteur  are  out 
of  the  question." 

^'  How  amazingly  poor  Princess  Stradalla 
will  be  outblazed  by  the  gaudy  liveries  of  the 
Schrams  !"  said  Mrs.  St.  Paul,  who  thought 
Lady  Adelaide  and  her  father  extremely  prosy. 
"  I  am  told  they  raise  the  price  of  gold  lace 
wherever  they  go.'^ 

"  I  thought  the  sturdy  Americans  despised 
such  gaudy  distinctions  ?"  said  Sir  William. 

^^  Not  in  Europe,"  replied  Dr.  Moorsom. 
'^  Schram  found  himself  so  often  mistaken 
for  one  of  the  ^  helps/  and  the  head  help  was 
so  often  spoken  to  for  his  master,  that  in  self- 
defence  he  was  obliged  to  hang  out  the  ensigns 
of  feudal  life." 

"  Princess  Stradalla  (whose  grand  apartment 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  227 

they  have  hired),  declares  that  instead  of  having 
the  carriage  at  the  door  at  a  certain  hour,  they 
have  always  a  stand  of  carriages  in  waiting, 
open,  shut,  coaches,  chariots,  caleches,  cabrio- 
lets, ready  to  answer  their  call,  or  that  of  their 
hangers-on;  beside  saddle  horses  a  discretion 
for  the  use  of  their  morning  visiters,^^  observed 
Mrs.  St.  Paul. 

'^  What  pure  philanthropy  !"  cried  the  doc- 
tor, 

^'  Excellent  policy  in  Paris,  perhaps,^^  ob- 
served Lord  Colebrooke,  "  where  the  misfor- 
tunes and  impoverishment  of  la  haute  noblesse, 
have  stripped  the  spunging  system  of  a  portion 
of  its  dishonour.  The  old  emigrant  dukes  and 
marquesses  who  in  their  youth  gambled  away 
the  pocket  money  so  splendidly  allowed  them 
by  Lord  Moira,  do  not  blush  to  fawn  and  prey 
upon  the  Schrams.  Here,  people  are  of  a  differ* 
ent  way  of  thinking.      The    Neapolitans   will 


228     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

overreach  brother  Jonathan,  if  they  can,  in  the 
sale  of  a  picture  or  antique  ;  but  they  will  not 
stoop  to  pick  up  the  crumbs  that  fall  from  his 
table." 

"  Let  them  overreach  Schram,  if  they  can  \" 
cried  Dr.  Moorsom,  laughing.  "  ^  They  need 
ha^  long  spoons  to  sup  with  the  de^il !'  The 
old  gentleman  has  still  enough  of  the  pettifog- 
gery of  the  Broadway  about  him  to  be  a  sharp 
hand  at  a  bargain  ! " — 

"  I  confess  it  w^ould  give  me  no  pain  to  find 
that  he  was  overreached/'  observed  Gerald 
Wroughton.  "  Wherever  this  man  goes,  he 
purchases  whatever  is  most  costly,  not  to  gratify 
his  individual  taste,  but  to  exhibit  the  length  of 
his  purse  ;  and  when  people  bring  their  vanity 
into  the  market  with  all  the  streamers  of  its 
ostentation  flying,  they  mark  themselves  out 
for  dupes !" 

^^  I   am  sure   the   balls   and  concerts  with 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  229 

which  they  threaten  us,  will  be  a  horrid  bore, 
and  cause  a  total  break  up  of  society  \''  said 
Mrs.  St.  Paul,  languidly,  drawing  her  cachemere 
more  closely  over  her  shoulders.  "  I  hope 
they  won't  expect  one  to  go  to  them?  Dr. 
Moorsom,  pray  make  Mrs.  Longman-Tomp- 
kinson  understand  that  she  need  not  count 
upon  7ne  for  any  thing  of  the  kind." 

"  My  dear  madam,  I  do  not  undertake  to 
furnish  Mrs.  Carlton  Terrace  with  under- 
standing,'' replied  the  blunt  doctor ;  and  a 
conversation  ensued  between  him  and  his  pa- 
tient, to  which  Helmsley  found  it  impossible  to 
give  his  attention.  His  eyes  were  irresistibly  at- 
tracted towards  the  table  where  Gerald  and  Lady 
Adelaide  had  established  themselves  at  chess. 

There  was  something  domestic  in  their 
attitude  which  displeased  him.  Although 
placed  so  close  beside  the  circle  as  to  take  a 
share  in  the  conversation,  they  had  means  of 


230  THE    WOMAN    OP    THE    WORLD. 

addressing  to  each  other  by-words  and  com- 
ments, unheard  by  the  rest  of  the  party,  and  of 
interchanging  glances  more  eloquent  than 
words. 

With   her  long  hair   simply  parted  on  her 
forehead  and  twisted  into  a  knot, — attired  in  a 
dress  of  dark  velvet,  which  imparted  a  rich  con- 
trast to  the  dazzling  whiteness  of  her  shoulders 
and  of  the  ungloved  arm  resting  on  the  edge  of 
the  chess- table, — without  an  ornament, — ■with- 
out an  affectation, — Lady  Adelaide  presented  a 
realization  of  the  ideal  of  some  poet's  or  ai  tlst's 
dream.     It  was  beauty  of  the  highest  order, — 
of  form,  of  colour,  of  expression ;  it  was  beauty 
which  caused  the   heart  of  Helmsley  to  sink 
within  him,  when  he  reflected  how  soon   he 
might  be  brought  within  hourly  peril   of  its 
charms ; — and  at  the  cost  to  Gerald  Wroughton, 
of  what  fearful  hazard  of  happiness  ! — 

Short  as  was  the  period  since  he  had  shrunk 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.     231 

from  the  self-avowal  of  a  passion  which  he  felt 
to  be  unhallowed  and  degrading,  Helmsley  now 
gave  himself  up  to  the  consciousness  of  his 
enthralment.  So  is  it  ever  with  a  lover  I — 
Closing  his  eyes  and  mind  far  longer  than 
reason  can  justify  against  conviction  of  the 
growing  evil,  the  moment  when,  by  some 
sudden  and  inexplicable  impulse,  he  exclaims 
in  the  secrecy  of  his  heart,  ^^  I  love,"  is  the 
last  in  which  he  attempts  to  struggle  against 
his  passion.  When  once  the  shghtest  crevice 
is  opened,  the  embankment  gives  way  at  once 
before  the  impetuosity  of  the  torrent. 

He  no  longer  attempted  to  avert  his  impas- 
sioned gaze  from  the  fair  mischief  before  him ; 
no  longer  sought  to  put  harsh  constructions  on 
her  sentiments  and  actions.  At  times,  he 
persuaded  himself  that  it  was  for  Gerald^s  sake 
he  devoted  himself  to  the  contemplation  of  his 
future    sister-in-law;    but   oftener   still,   truth 


232  THE   WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

prevailed  over  his  sophistry;  and  alone  with 
his  conscience^  he  admitted  with  varying  com- 
plexion and  hurried  respiration,  that  he  was  no 
longer  master  of  himself, — that  a  spell  had 
enthralled  his  destinies, — that  the  tranquillity  of 
his  life  was  broken  up  for  ever, — that  he  existed 
but  in  the  presence  of  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere ! 
Nor  was  he  sufficiently  a  hypocrite  to  frame 
his  answer  to  Emma  Wroughton  in  terms  to 
suit  the  tenour  of  her  sisterly  scruples.  He 
admitted  his  knowledge  of  Gerald's  attachment ; 
he  admitted  his  belief  that  no  man  honoured 
by  the  smiles  of  Lord  Colebrooke's  daughter 
was  likely  to  withdraw  his  allegiance ;  and  after 
fairly  stating  the  engagements  he  had  exacted 
from  his  brother-in-law,  entreated  that  Emma 
and  her  aunt  would  rather  prepare  themselves 
for  a  more  lenient  judgment  of  their  future 
relative,  than  anticipate  the  slightest  advantage 
rom  delav. 


THE   WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  233 


CHAPTER  XVL 


La,  tous  les  soirs,  la  troupe  vagabonde 
D'un  peuple  oisif,  appele  le  beau  monde, 
Va  promener  de  reduit  en  reduit, 
L'inquietude  et  I'ennui  qui  la  suit. 
La  sont  en  foule,  antiques  mijaurees 
Disant  des  riens  d'un  ton  perroquet 
Lorgnant  des  sots,  et  trichant  au  piquet. 

VOLTAIIIE. 

His  mind  thus  unburdened  of  a  portion  of 
its  grievances^  Helmsley  strove  to  relieve  his 
irritation  by  rushing  into  the  flurry  of  dissipa- 
tion by  which  Naples  was,  at  that  moment, 
opportunely  agitated.     But  recklessness  came 


234  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

not  at  his  call ! — Though  he  had  no  longer  pa- 
tience for  the  plaintive  valetudinarianisms  of 
Mrs,  St.  Paul  or  leisure  for  the  gentle  dulness 
of  her  husband^  he  found  it  impossible  to  chime 
in  with  the  rattling  unmeaning  hilarity  of  the 
set  which  had  been  attracted  from  Rome  by  a 
rumour  of  the  projected  fetes  of  the  Schrams 
and  Longman-Tompkinsons.     There  were  balls, 
masquings,   charades,   tableaux,    going   on   all 
the  seven  days  of  the  week;   but  though  he 
hurried   from  one  house  to  another,  to  gaze 
upon  the  same  unmeaning  faces  and  give  ear  to 
the  same  unmeaning   ejaculations,  the  move- 
ments  which  he  trusted  would    exhaust  his 
irritability  of  body,  served  only  to  stimulate 
his  irritabihty  of  mind. 

If  the  insipidity  of  Lady  DarHng^s  daughters, 
and  the  languid  inanity  of  Moorsom^s  fair  hy- 
pochondriac, had  enhanced  the  dignified  sim- 
plicity and  clear  intelligence  of  Lady  Adelaide, 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  235 

what  far  higher  relief  was  now  afforded  to 
her  merits,  by  contrast  with  the  purse-proud 
fussiness  of  the  Schrams,  and  the  noisy  frivo- 
lity of  the  flight  of  summer  swallows  which  had 
migrated  to  twitter  in  their  sunshine ! — Mrs. 
Longman-Tompkinson,  apprehensive  of  being 
outglittered  in  a  single  spangle,  by  the  gilt 
gingerbread  of  the  Broadway,  was  labouring 
like  a  recruiting-sergeant  to  increase  her  forces, 
with  favours  flying  and  beat  of  drum;  while 
curiosity  to  ascertain  whether  the  high  mighti- 
nesses of  the  New  World  ate  with  their  fin- 
gers and  dieted  their  guests  on  pumpkin-pie, 
attracted  the  untravelled  and  unenlightened 
nobility  of  Naples  to  the  balls  and  dinners 
of  the  Schrams,  and  policy  engaged  the  corps 
diplomatique  to  fraternize  with  the  transatlantic 
colony. 

^^  We  intend  to  stand  by  the  Tompkinson 
woman  V  said  Alexis  Bagot  to  Helmsley,  as 


236  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

they  were  riding  home  one  day  together  from 
the  Corso* 

"  By  wtf  meaning  the  mission  ?" 

"  Oh  dear,  no !  —  I  know  nothing  about 
school  during  play-hours.  Portumna,  you 
know,  is  a  sort  of  person  to  go  any  where  he 
is  hkely  to  be  amused, — whether  to  laugh  at 
or  with  his  entertainers; — Horton  is  a  galley- 
slave  who  stirs  only  as  pleases  the  duchess,  to 
whom  he  is  chained ;—  and  Harford,  of  course, 
follows  Portumna,  like  the  shadow  of  a  shade. 
All  three  will  become  Schrammites.  But  we 
adhere  to  the  Tompkinsons  !" 

''  I  am  to  conclude,  then,  that  to  realize  the 
number  of  your  pronoun,  you  write  yourself 
^  M7e,  Alexis  Bagot?'*' 

"  No,  I  speak  in  the  name  of  my  set.  Lady 
Wvcombe  cannot  endure  these  half-horse,  half- 
alligator  monsters.  Madame  de  la  Chuchotterie 
comes  to  her  every  day,  with  proposals  of  al- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WOULD.  237 

liance ;  undertaking  that  she  shall  make  out  the 
list  for  their  next  ball,  and  order  them  a  dessert 
service  at  the  royal  manufactory  emblazoned 
with  whatever  coat  of  arms  she  chooses  to 
assign  them.  But  we  are  cruel ! — What  do  the 
Colebrooke  party  intend  to  do  }"  he  continued, 
coming  at  length  to  his  point.  ^'  What  has 
Lady  Adelaide  decided  ?^^ 

"  I  have  never  inquired/^  replied  Helmsley. 
'^  Conduct  herself,  I  presume,  with  her 
usual  judicious  good-breeding;  neither  make 
a  favour  of  going,  nor  a  merit  of  staying 
away.'^ 

'^  The  world,  then,  is  right  in  its  conjectures  V 

cried  Bagot.    '^  Wroughton  2*5  engaged  to  marry 

the  fair  divorcee  ?'' 

'^  From  what  do  you  draw  your  inference  ?^* 

demanded   Helmsley,   striving  to   speak   with 

composure. 

From  the  eagerness  of  your  defence.     I 


ic 


238  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

never  heard  you  so  strenuous  before.     You  are 
pleading  the  cause  of  a  sister-in-law/^ 

^^  I  am  pleading  the  cause  of  a  very  charming 
woman/^ 

"  On  second  thoughts,"  interrupted  Bagot, 
caring  very  little  for  the  motives  or  opinions  of 
his  companion, — "  Lady  Adelaide  certainly  v/ill 
not  coalesce  with  the  Schrams.  Portumna 
has  taken  them  up  as  vehemently  as  he  takes 
up  all  such  showy  novelties;  and  it  is  their 
cure  just  now,  you  know,  to  fight  under  dif- 
ferent banners/^ 

"  Indeed  T  know  nothing  about  the  matter  \'^ 
cried  Helmsley,  with  rising  indignation. 

^'  Portumna  is  too  much  a  man  of  the 
world  to  interfere  with  a  lady^s  prospects ;  for 
entre  nous,  old  Colebrooke,  who  is  wretchedly 
out  at  elbows,  only  waits  to  get  rid  of  bis 
daughter  to  break  up  his  establishment.  Por- 
tumna is   not,   by  fortune   or   inheritance,   a 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  239 

marrying  man.     It  would  be  most  unfair  to 
stand  in   Lady  Adelaide's  light,  being,   as  it 
is,  her  last  glimmer.      I  must   do  Portumna 
the  justice  to  say  that  he  is  the  best  bred  man 
in  Europe. — Injudicious  though, — vastly  inju- 
dicious ! — As  Lady  Wycombe  says,  his  system 
has  always  been  sens  dessus  dessous.    When  a 
mere  attache  and  his  business  was  to  play  the 
agreeable,  he  chose  to  ruin  himself  by  giving 
the  best  dinners  in  Europe;   now  that  he  is 
ambassador  and  his  business  is  to  give  the  best 
dinners  in  Europe,  he  fritters  away  his  life  in 
making  himself  agreeable  ! — Do  Wroughton's 
estates  lie  in  a  hunting  country }" 

"  Within  reach  of  two  of  the  best  packs  in 
England,'^  replied  Helmsley,  much  surprised. 
"Why?'— 

"  I  was  wondering  whether  there  would  be 
any  apology  for  a  long  winter  visit  from  his 


240  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Excellency.    We  should  not  be  sorry  to  have 
our  next  carnival  here  to  ourselves/^ 

Nettled  by  the  flippancy  of  his  companion, 
Helmsley  seized  the  first  pretext  to  ride  on. 
But  it  was  not  so  easy  to  leave  behind  the 
vexatious  reflections  arising  from  the  dispa- 
ragement he  found  universally  coupled  with 
the  name  of  the  Colebrookes.  Small  as  was 
his  experience  in  the  levity  of  tongue  preva- 
lent in  fashionable  society,  he  knew  that 
the  really  excellent  are  never  wantonly  at- 
tacked; that  it  is  only  the  infirm  and  defec- 
tive of  the  herd  who  are  made  a  prey  of  by  the 
rest.  Often,  when  smarting  under  the  insinu- 
ations he  heard  thrown  out  by  Horton  and 
others,  he  resolved  to  appeal  anew  to  the  good 
sense  of  Gerald  Wroughton,  and  implore  him 
to  renounce  a  connexion  so  fraught  with  dis- 
honour.    But  an  hour  spent  in  the  saloons  of 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  241 

the  Palazzo  Balbi  sufficed  to  renew  his  irreso- 
lution, by  bringing  it  home  to  his  conscience 
that,  encouraged  and  favoured  like  Gerald, 
like  Gerald  he  should  become  the  most  infa- 
tuated of  lovers. 

Distinguished  at  all  times  by  the  gentle  sua- 
vity of  her  address.  Lady  Adelaide  appeared 
inspired  by  a  yet  more  feminine  softness  by  the 
attachment  to  which  she  was  evidently  giving 
way.     Few  women  were  likely  to  have  received 
such  attentions  as  those  of  Wroughton  with 
indifference.     Eminently  handsome,  his  coun- 
tenance was  the  variable  index  of  a  lively  mind. 
Inferior  to  Helmsley  in  information,  he  pos- 
sessed that  happy  talent  of  knowing  what  to 
say  and  saying  it  at  the  right  moment,  which 
throws  the   slow-paced    pedant  into   despair. 
While  Helmsley  was  screwing  up  his  courage  or 
St.  Paul  hunting  out  appropriate  words  for  a 
speech,  Gerald  never  failed  to  call  up  a  smile 

VOL.  I.  M 


242     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

into  the  countenance  of  Lady  Adelaide  by  some 
spirited  sally,  or  excite  her  curiosity  by  some 
well-timed  anecdote.  He  was  endowed  with 
the  esprit  de  conversation  in  which  his  coun- 
trymen are  so  generally  deficient. 

But  it  was  less  his  power  of  amusing  Lady 
Adelaide  which  excited  the  jealous  pangs  of 
Sir  William,  than  his  admission  to  the  stiU 
more  flattering  distinction  of  sitting  by  her  side 
in  moments  of  sadness  and  abstraction.  From 
his  own  box  at  St.  Carlos,  Helmsley  often  tor- 
tured himself  by  watching  the  sympathy  of 
silence  with  which  the  lovers  listened  together 
to  the  touching  strains  of  the  ^^  Othello,^^ 
and  "  Medea.^^  They  seemed  perfectly  to  un- 
derstand each  other ; — they  seemed  already  pre- 
pared for  the  heart-in-heart  collision  of  a  life  of 
domestic  happiness ! 

Sometimes,  rousing  himself  from  the  reveries 
produced  by  such  a  picture,  he  would  intrude 


THE   WOMAN   OP   THE   WORLD.  243 

upon  their  happiness,  as  if  in  vengeance ;  and 
it  almost  provoked  him  to  observe  with  what 
courtesy  his  appearance  was  welcomed  by  Lady 
Adelaide,  as  if  admitting  his  claim  to  be  there 
as  one  of  the  nearest  relatives  of  her  future 
husband.  She  would  invite  him  to  the  seat  by 
her  side;  address  him  in  her  softest  tones, 
with  utmost  blandishment;  defer  to  his  opi- 
nions,— draw  out  his  conversational  powers, — 
applaud  his  sentiments, — rejoice  in  his  plea- 
sures ;  talk  to  him  of  Northamptonshire — of 
his  home,  his  children,  his  return  to  England, — 
till  her  gracious  interest  almost  tempted  him  to 
execrate  her  in  return ! — He  could  not  bear  to 
know  that  he  was  indebted  to  Gerald  for  the 
melting  glances  that  reposed  with  almost  sisterly 
affection  upon  his  face ;  for  the  graceful  ges- 
ture that  seemed  prepared  to  admit  conviction, 
ere  half  his  argument  was  unfolded;  for  the 

M   2 


244  THE   WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD. 

conciliatory   expression,    for    the    deprecating 
smile ! 

Disquieted  and  ill  at  ease,  how  often  did  he 
wish  that  he  had  never  been  tempted  to  visit 
Naples;  that  he  had  never  been  admitted  to 
the  companionship  of  Lady  Adelaide ! — "  Had 
I  known  her  only  as  Wroughton^s  wife,"  he 
would  exclaim,  in  his  solitary  strolls  amid  the 
shrubby  steeps  of  Pozzuoli,  "  she  would  have 
produced  no  other  impression  on  my  mind  than 
regret  that  a  woman  of  doubtful  reputation 
should  have  been  forced  upon  the  adoption  of 
the  family.  But  now,  —when — when  will  my 
better  reason  overcome  the  hateful  enchant- 
ments with  which  she  has  stirred  my  spirit  to 
this  mood  of  madness  ?^ — 

He  determined,  at  length,  to  return  no  more  to 
the  Palazzo  Balbi ;  to  greet  the  beautiful  offender 
with  courtesy  when  chance  should  bring  them 
together  in  society,  but  expose  himself  no  further 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  245 

to  the  dangerous  charm  of  her  familiar  conver- 
sation. 

But  from  the  moment  we  rivet  round  our 
necks  the  badge  of  bondage  to  society,  our 
servitude  is  complete.  It  was  no  longer  pos- 
sible for  Helmsley  to  withdraw  from  his  accus- 
tomed haunts,  unless  on  the  plea  of  indispo- 
sition ;  and  as  yet,  the  fever  of  his  soul  pro- 
duced no  visible  signs  upon  a  countenance 
bright  with  the  hues  and  animation  of  health. 
There  was  no  pretext  to  be  made  to  Gerald  for 
confining  himself  to  the  house ;  none  to  be 
made  to  those  who  met  him  in  his  daily  ride, 
for  secluding  himself  from  their  nightly-recur- 
ring entertainments. 

One  evening,  as  he  was  preparing  to  quit 
the  St.  Pauls  on  learning  that  Lord  Colebrooke 
and  his  daughter  were  expected,  he  was  caught 
at  the  door  by  Dr.  Moorsom,  with  proposals 
that  he  should  join  a  large  party  of  Englis^ 


246  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

gentlemen^  who,  on  the  first  favourable  change 
of  weather,  were  to  make  the  ascent  of  Vesu- 
vius ;  and  ere  the  good  doctor  had  finished  his 
proposal  or  relinquished  his  button,  Lady 
Adelaide  de  Vere  was  beside  him. 

^*  The  very  person  we  wanted  to  see  !'^  cried 
Gerald,  as  he  followed  the  Palazzo  Balbi  party 
into  the  room ;  and  that  word  "  we,^'  spoke 
daggers  to  the  ear  of  Helmsley,  who  was  already 
attempting  his  escape. 

^^  Lady  Adelaide  had  almost  made  up  her 
mind  to  write  to  you,^^  he  continued,  laying  his 
hand  on  the  sleeve  of  his  brother-in-law,  and 
drawing  him  back  into  the  room.  ^'  She  wants 
to  ask  you  a  favour.  Nay,  do  not  look  so 
magnanimously  stern,  or  I  shall  be  afraid  to 
follow  up  my  request.^^ 

^'  I  trust  my  severity  is  not  very  appalling,'^ 
replied  Sir  William,  with  a  smile  that  greatly 
resembled  a  sneer.  "  What  does  her  ladyship 
require  of  me  ?^* 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  247 

"  This  is  worse  and  worse  1"  cried  Gerald. 
"  You  alarm  even  me ! — I  will  leave  you  to 
^  her  ladyship/  and  see  what  power  of  fusion 
lies  in  her  smile.  To  me  you  are  likely  to  be 
unbending  as  iron.'^ 

Sir  WiUiam  again  made  a  movement  to  leave 
the  room,  muttering  something  of  being  engaged 
to  Princess  Sforza. 

"  Princess  Sforza?^'  exclaimed  Moorsom, 
who  was  still  standing  within  hearing  of  the 
two  brothers.  "  My  dear  sir,  you  are  dream- 
ing 1  The  princess  has  been  dining  here ; 
Thursday  is  her  night  for  receiving.^^  And 
Helmsley,  thus  convicted,  was  forced  to  re- 
main. 

'^  And  how  goes  on  the  Petrarch  group  ?" 
continued  the  doctor,  addressing  Gerald. 
"  Are  you  still  obliged  to  put  up  with  me 
for  your  Cardinal  Colonna,  for  want  of  a 
better  ?'' 


248     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

'^  We  can  do  nothing  till  we  have  Helmsley's 
answer/'  replied  Wroughton,  "  and  neither 
Lady  Adelaide  nor  I  have  courage  to  make  the 
proposition." 

"Courage? — Pho,  pho,  pho !"  cried  the  doctor. 
^^  My  dear  Sir  William,  there  is  a  great  honour 
designed  you  by  the  handsomest  woman  in 
Naples ;  and  my  young  friend  pretends  to  be 
afraid  of  breaking  the  news  to  you,  lest  your 
joy  should  be  too  overpowering.  We  Enghsh 
feel  ourselves  bound  to  muster  strong  in  favour 
of  Mrs.  Longman- Tompkinson  and  her  bal 
costume.  The  woman  is  a  bore, — her  ball  a 
greater ;  but  it  will  not  be  fair  to  let  the  Yan- 
kees beat  our  countrywoman  out  of  the  field, — 
which,  by  the  way,  is  to  be  a  field  of  the  cloth 
of  gold.'' 

^^  I  never  go  to  fancy  balls,"  observed  Helms- 
ley,  beginning  to  suspect  his  drift.     ^^  I  do  not 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  249 

make  a  greater  jackanapes  of  myself  than  I  find 
absolutely  necessary. ^^ 

"  Hallo — hallo  i'^ — cried  the   doctor,  good- 

humouredly.     "  This  is  bearing  down  upon  us 

with  a  vengeance ! — This  is  throwing  down  the 

gauntlet  to  a  brigade  at  a  time  ! — Why  we  are 

all  going  to  make  jackanapeses  of  ourselves. — 

I,  old  Martin  Moorsom,  among  the  rest,  though 

in  my  five-and -fiftieth  year :  and  what  business 

have  you,  pray,  at  less  than  thirty,  to  be  wiser 

than  all  the  world  ? — Come,  come  ! — relax  I — 

relent !  —  Lady   Adelaide,   who   is  to   be   our 

Madonna  Laura,  will  hear  of  no  other  Petrarch 

than  yourself.     I  heard  her  reject  your  brother 

Gerald  Wroughton  there,  and  your  friends  Sir 

Raymond  and  St.  Paul." 

Helmsley  was  becoming  every  moment  more 
and  more  embarrassed ;  and  his  confusion  was  at 
the  utmost,  when  Lady  Adelaide,  advancing  to- 
wards him  with  the  grace  so  peculiarly  her  own, 

M  3 


250  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

modestly  and  mistrustingly  preferred  her  re- 
quest. "  At  the  general  desire  of  their  Italian 
friends/'  she  said, "  she  had  undertaken  to  get  up 
a  group,  including  the  more  illustrious  contem- 
poraries of  Petrarch  ;  Princess  Stradalla  having 
insisted  on  providing  her  a  costume  after  a  cele- 
brated original  portrait  of  Laura  de  Sades,  in 
the  Stradalla  gallery ;  but  it  was  impossible  to 
proceed  with  the  project  till  she  had  secured 
for  the  part  of  Petrarca,  some  English  repre- 
sentative,— some  Enghsh  friend, — with  whom 
she  could,  without  impropriety,  venture  on  so 
public  an  exhibition.^' 

Predetermined  on  refusal.  Sir  William  had 
scarcely  patience  to  allow  her  to  proceed  to  the 
end  of  her  explanation.  He  wished  to  spare 
Lady  Adelaide  the  humiliation  of  fruitless  en- 
treaty. But  in  the  course  of  the  siren's  address, 
there  was  so  much  gentle  hesitation,  so  manifest 
a  fear  of  giving  offence,  so  humble  a  conscious- 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  251 

ness  that  she  was  taking  a  liberty  with  one  of 
SO  grave  a  character  as  Sir  William  Helmsley, 
that  her  varying  colour  and  faltering  voice 
seemed  to  endow  her  with  a  thousand  new  and 
irresistible  charms.  All  the  apology,  therefore, 
that  the  bewildered  baronet  could  find  to  stam- 
mer in  reply,  was  an  assurance  of  his  inadc' 
quacy  to  support  the  part,  on  account  of  his 
imperfect  knowledge  of  the  Italian  language. 

"  Come,  come,  my  dear  good  sir,  we  shall 
hardly  admit  of  that  evasion,"  cried  the  doc- 
tor. "  At  a  fancy-ball,  people  are  required 
to  charm  the  eye  and  not  the  ear ;  we  are  only 
asked  to  '  look  delightfully  with  all  our  might,^ 
and  hold  our  peace.  You  are  the  very  man  for 
our  money  ! — Ottavio  Sforza  will  desire  nothing 
better  than  to  fit  you  out,  in  compliment  to  his 
sister's  picture ;  and  we  are  to  be  grouped 
together  by  the  young  artist  who  is  copying  the 
Pompeii  frescoes  for  St.  Paul.   All  that  remains 


252     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

for  your  ladyship  is  to  curtsey  your  thanks  to 
Sir  WiUiam  Helmsley  for  his  amiable  acquies- 
cence, and  smile  away  the  few  remaining  scruples 
that  darken  his  brows /^ 

Lady  Adelaide  did  as  she  was  required.  But 
she  contrived  to  throw  so  much  cordiality  into 
her  thanks,  and  to  suggest  the  extreme  caution 
to  which  she  was  compelled  by  the  peculiar 
delicacy  of  her  situation,  till  Helmsley  was 
alternately  gratified  by  the  compliment  of  her 
choice,  and  humbled  by  the  tacit  admission 
that  he  was  reckoned  the  least  dangerous  man 
in  Naples. 

Meanwhile  he  was  fairly  embarked  in  the 
scheme.  Disinclined  as  he  might  be  to  en- 
gage in  similar  levities,  he  was  ashamed  to 
recede,  ashamed  to  betray  the  weakness  and 
vacillation  of  his  mind.  Lady  Adelaide  had 
thanked  him,  —  Gerald  warmly  echoed  her 
thanks;    while   Moorsom   and   the    St.  Pauls, 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  253 

who  were  to  form  part  of  the  group,  compli- 
mented him  on  his  obligingness. 

Early  on  the  following  morning,  appeared 
Ottavio  Sforza  and  the  costumier,  sketch  and 
measures  in  hand,  to  equip  the  reserved  North- 
amptonshire baronet  to  figure  in  a  pageant,  as 
the  tenderest  of  poets  and  of  lovers  ! 


254  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


Men  are  but  children  of  a  larger  growth. 

Pope. 


Were  confirmation  wanting  to  the  truth  of 
the  poet^s  dictum,  it  might  be  found  in  the 
eagerness  with  which  beings,  self-styled  rational, 
engage  in  the  puppet-shows  of  fashionable  life, 
—in  tableaux,  costumed-balls,  and  masquerades. 
The  mummeries  of  morris-dancers  of  a  fair  or 
the  Mayday  gambols  of  a  village,  are  comprehen- 
sible enough ;  for  sweet  must  be  the  one  day's 
holiday  that  has  been  prefaced  by  months  of 
toil  and  self-denial.     But  the  pageantry  which 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.         255 

enables  the  rich  and  idle  to  array  their  manhood 
in  velvet  and  brocade,  instead  of  Irish  linen  and 
broadcloth,  is  the  spontaneous  ebullition  of 
human  weakness. 

For  a  whole  week  preceding  poor  Mr.  Long- 
man-Tompkinson^s    gala,    the    gay  world    of 
Naples  was  in  a  fever  of  frivolity.     The  Neapo- 
litans,  self-secure  of  the   superiority  of  their 
taste,  already  triumphed  by  anticipation  over 
the   gorgeous  vulgarity  of  the  Great  British ; 
prepared  to  oppose  to  diamond-laden  sultanas 
and  blazing  Queen  Elizabeths,   the   exquisite 
impersonation  of  some  of  the  chef  d'ceuvres  of 
their  schools  of  art ;  while  the  sweet  simplicity 
of  the  Darling  Misses  and  their  kind,  laboured 
diligently  in  getting  up  in  the  strictest  secrecy 
certain  Bearnaise  and  Spanish  costumes,  pro- 
testing,   to  each  other  every  time   they  met, 
their   intention  to  appear  in   "  a  thimple  ball 
dress. ^^ 


256  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Even  the  most  fastidious  did  not  affect  to 
exempt  themselves  from  the  reigning  epidemy ; 
and  it  was  known  that  Lady  Wycombe  had  not 
only  vouchsafed  a  promise  to  the  Tompkinsons, 
but  was  preparing  for  a  sensation.     She,  too, 
had  her  group ;  and  as  young  Harford  was  in- 
cluded in  it  as  well  as  her  established  adherent 
Alexis  Bagot,  there  was  reason  to  infer  that 
Lord  Portumna  had  also  attached  himself  (either 
through  excess  of  treason  or  excess  of  confede- 
racy) to  the  train  of  the  rival  of  Lady  Adelaide. 
However  vexed  in  the  first  instance  to  find 
himself  involved  in   such   a  display,  however 
conscious   that   he  was   about   to   figure  in  a 
pastime  the  report  of  which  would  draw  upon 
him  the  animadversions  of  his  sober  friends 
in  England,  Sir  William    soon   became    inte- 
rested in  the  details  and  progress  of  the  prepa- 
rations.    Scarcely  a  morning  passed,  but  it  was 
necessary  for  the  httle  party  to  assemble  at  the 


THE    WOMAN    OP   THE   WORLD.  257 

Palazzo  Balbi,  to  canvass  the  admission  of  some 
new  member,  or  some  variation  of  grouping. 
The  costumier  of  San  Carlos  was  in  frequent 
attendance;  and  the  cares  of  poor  MrsLongman- 
Tompkinson, — who,  half  out  of  her  wits  for  joy 
at  the  eclat  with  which  she  had  environed  herself, 
flew  from  house  to  house  to  keep  up  the  excite- 
ment and  spur  the  flagging  zeal  of  her  consti- 
tuents,— seemed  almost  superfluous.  In  vain 
did  she  whisper  that  she  had  hopes  of  an 
incognito  visit  from  the  king  and  queen;  and 
that  Prince  Charles  and  Prince  Leopold  had 
announced  their  royal  intention  of  breaking 
through  royal  custom  and  appearing  in  charac- 
ter : — it  was  with  their  own  costumes  and  power 
of  conquest,  that  each  was  severally  occupied. 
They  cared  as  little  whether  Mrs.  Longman- 
Tompkinson  had  agreed  to  expend  a  few  hun- 
dred guineas  more  than  the  Schrams  upon  the 
decorations  of  her  suite  of  apartments,  as  whe- 


258  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

ther  the  Schrams  were  to  exceed  the  Tompkin- 
sons  in  the  number  of  their  dozens  of  dozens  of 
Champagne. 

The  day,  the  night  arrived,  preceded  by  six 
nights  and  days  of  anxious  vigil  for  the  Enghsh 
housekeeper  and  Itahan  maitre  d'hotel.  All 
that  British  gold  and  Neapolitan  taste  could 
supply  was  in  preparation  for  the  five  hundred 
expected  and  expectant  guests;  and  at  the 
appointed  hour,  Mrs.  Longman-Tompkinson, 
radiant  in  smiles  and  a  diamond  tiara,  took  her 
station  of  triumph  at  the  door. 

Unluckily,  the  day  selected  for  the  fete  was 
that  of  the  arrival  of  the  courier ;  and  it  hap- 
pened that  among  the  letters  placed  in  the  hands 
of  Sir  William  Helmsley  was  one  which  he  felt 
ought  to  prevent  him  from  joining  the  festivities 
of  the  evening.  Not,  indeed,  as  a  matter  of 
feeling ;  for  the  relative  whose  dangerous  iUness 
was  announced  in  a  mere  letter  of  neighbourly 


THE   WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  259 

civility  from  his  prosy  friend  De  Ligne,  was  a 
man  who  had  never  shown  him,  and  consequently 
never  merited  in  return,  one  gleam  of  kinsmanly 
affection.  Still,  the  blood  of  one  of  his  parents 
flowed  in  the  veins  of  Lord  Shropshire;  and 
Sir  William  was  not  yet  so  callous  to  the 
opinions  of  society,  as  to  defy  the  ceremonies 
of  its  exaction.  He  knew  that  it  was  his  busi- 
ness to  give  up  the  ball, — to  disappoint  Lady 
Adelaide, — and  vex  and  mortify  the  Tompkin- 
sons  and  their  guests ;  but  he  felt  that  the 
sacrifice  was  impossible. 

Wroughton,  who  was  absent  when  the  letters 
were  brought  in,  had  no  officious  correspondent 
to  corroborate  the  report  of  Mr.  De  Ligne ;  and 
it  was  unlikely  that  any  other  person  in  Naples 
should  have  received  intimation  of  the  fact.  It 
was  not  for  Helmsley  to  circulate  the  rumour. 
No  one  need  know  a  word  of  the  matter.     After 


260  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

locking  De  Ligne^s  letter  into  his  writing-desk, 
he  determined  to  go  to  the  ball ! 

And  how  could  he  do  otherwise  than  exult 
in  his  determination,  when,  on  arriving  at  the 
Palazzo  Balbi,  he  beheld  Lady  Adelaide  de 
Vere,  to  whom  the  elegant  lightness  of  her 
costume  imparted  an  almost  girlish  air  of  sim- 
plicity. The  robe  of  pale  straw  colour,  bodiced 
with  violet-coloured  velvet,  the  slight  gauze 
hanging  sleeves  looped  up  to  display  the  sym- 
metrical beauty  of  her  ungloved  hands, — the 
hair  bound  over  her  forehead,  its  braids  half 
escaping  from  the  net  of  gold  and  pearls  so 
often  described  by  her  poet  and  lover, — all  was 
in  strict  accordance  with  the  descriptions  of 
Petrarch  and  the  portrait  of  the  Stradalla  gal- 
lery. Lady  Adelaide,  slightly  embarrassed, 
perhaps  by  the  novelty  of  her  position,  looked 
paler  and  more  delicately  lovely  than  ever :  and 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.     261 

when  Sir  William,  arrayed  in  his  simple  white 
tunic  and  crowned  with  the  laurels  of  the  capitol, 
approached  to  offer  her  his  hand,  her  eyes 
involuntarily  cast  down  to  veil  her  confusion 
completing  her  resemblance  to  the  well-known 
picture  of  Laura  de  Sades, — so  perfect  was  the 
illusion  that  Sforza,  Guastalla,  the  Duchess 
d'Asti,  Princess  Stradalla,  and  all  the  other 
Italians  present,  burst  into  irrepressible  de- 
monstrations of  rapture  and  applause. 

It  was  remarkable  that  all  the  other  English 
destined  to  form  part  of  the  eventful  group, 
were  attempting  to  disguise  their  mauvaise  honte, 
by  laughing  at  themselves  or  each  other, — by 
affected  buffoonery  and  clumsy  irony.  Even 
Gerald,'who*personated  Boccaccio,  was  pretend- 
ing to  throw  himself  into  attitudes  at  the  feet 
of  Mrs.  St.  Paul,  while  old  Moorsom  assumed 
the  solemnity  of  demeanour  becoming  the  Sa- 
cred College.     But  Petrarch  and  Laura  were 


262  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

apparently  mutually  engrossed.  They  had  no 
eyes  but  for  each  other. 

It  was  time  to  set  oflf.  Arrived  at  the  Pa- 
lazzo Stradalla,  a  legion  of  sbirri  and  a  few 
scattered  horseguards  announced  as  intelligibly 
as  the  illuminated  portal,  that  a  fete  was  toward 
and  royalty  expected.  The  grand  staircase, 
usually  so  Italianly  filthy,  was  carpeted  and 
adorned  with  flowering  shrubs ;  the  antecham- 
bers were  crowded  with  the  powdered  lackeys 
of  the  Tompkinsons,  glittering  in  the  flaming 
plush  and  broadcloth  of  the  family-liveries.  In 
the  hall  below,  was  stationed  the  miUtary  band 
of  the  royal  guard  ;  and  from  the  saloons  within, 
breathed  the  softer  strains  of  a  well-ordered 
orchestra. 

Lady  Adelaide  and  her  party  had  agreed  to 
appear  early  in  the  evening,  that  a  prominent 
station  might  be  assigned  to  their  group  pre- 
vious to  the  arrival  of  the  Princes.     Yet,  early 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  263 

as  it  was,  the  same  especial  invitation  had  been 
extended  to  so  many,  that  the  grand  gallery 
was  already  nearly  full.  At  the  entrance  stood 
Mrs.  Longman-Tompkinson,  diving  and  diving 
in  a  perpetual  succession  of  curtseys,  all  affa- 
bility to  her  equals,  all  servility  to  her  superiors ; 
a  forest  of  diamond  sprays  nodding  and  quiver- 
ing upon  her  head,  and  scarcely  an  inch  of  her 
person  or  attire  undecorated  with  jewels.  She 
looked  like  the  idol  of  Loretto,  twitched  and 
agitated  by  the  vivifying  influence  of  a  galvanic 
battery.  The  best  of  fine  ladies  is  at  best  a 
frivolous  thing;  but  a  vulgar,  would-be  fine 
lady  is  vexatious  as  well  as  frivolous,  and  alto- 
gether insupportable. 

Then  there  was  the  frigid  Lady  Darling,  the 
lady  "  with  a  right  sense  of  things,'^  magnifi- 
cently attired  as  Joanna,  queen  of  Naples  ;  while 
her  daughters,  calling  themselves  Minna  and 
Brenda,  were  draperied  after  the  fashion  of  two 


264  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    "WORLD. 

Ossianic  nymphs.  Lady  Mary  MitchelPs  young- 
est girl,  who  resembled  a  white  mouse  in  size 
and  complexion,  kept  running  about,  squeak- 
ing to  her  English  friends, — "  Am  I  not  a 
famous  figure  ? — I^m  a  brigand^s  wife ! — Look 
at  my  stiletto, — look  at  my  pistols, — look  at 
my  coral  agnus  Dei ! — An^t  I  a  capital  brigand^s 
wife?^^ — Her  elder  sister,  whose  somewhat 
more  eveille  countenance  had  braved  the  Al- 
macks  of  twelve  seasons,  and  was  now  making 
the  tour  of  Europe  for  the  same  purpose  that 
Whittington's  cat  made  its  voyage,  to  be  dis- 
posed of  to  the  highest  bidder,  had  disguised 
her  audacity  under  a  quaker's  cap ;  while  their 
mamma,  the  roundabout  Lady  Mary,  sinking 
under  a  train  of  threadbare  black  velvet  and  a 
coif  a  la  Anne  Boleyn,  was  compared  by  Alexis 
Bagot  to  a  pate  de  foie  gras  covered  with  a 
parish  pall,  or  the  Heidelberg  ton  in  mourning 
for  its  grandfather. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  265 

The  ^^  Trionfo  di  Petrarca/^  meanwhile,  was 
welcomed  with  rapture  by  the  Itahan  portion 
of  the  assembly.  Lady  Wycombe  and  her 
party,  attired  as  the  personages  of  "  Waverley/' 
had  already  enjoyed  their  tribute  of  admiration, 
and  were  mingling  with  the  crowd.  But  Lady 
Adelaide  was  a  being  apart.  Lady  Adelaide 
was  one  of  those  lovely  wonders  of  too  rare 
occurrence  to  be  regarded  at  any  moment  w4th 
a  careless  eye.  To  the  charm  of  beauty  the 
Italians  are  almost  as  susceptible  as  to  that  of 
music.  They  could  not  pay  sufficient  homage 
to  a  Laura  yielded  by  the  pale  regions  of  the 
North,  to  dispute  the  palm  of  lovehness  with 
the  traditional  idol  of  their  favourite  minstrel. 

In  spite  of  himself,  Helmsley  was  not  only 
pleased  by  the  success  of  their  masquing,  but 
deeply  gratified  to  witness  the  deference  with 
which  his  fair  companion  was  complimented  by 
the  leading  personages  of  Naples.     Attracted 

VOL.    I.  N 


266  THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD. 

by  the  prospect  of  so  brilliant  a  f^te,  all  that 
was  distinguished  in  society  was  assembled 
under  the  roof  of  "  Ladi  Tomkin ;" — cour- 
tiersj  ministers,  diplomats, — civil  and  military. 

"  At  least/^  thought  Sir  WiUiam, "  whatever 
may  be  the  Uberty  of  tongue  assumed  by  Hor- 
ton  or  Bagot  towards  her,  the  influence  of  Lady 
Adelaide  is  honourably  admitted  by  men,  ay, 
and  by  women,  as  much  their  superiors  in  rank 
and  station  as  in  sense  and  candour.^^ 

He  was  enchanted  by  the  exquisite  elegance 
of  her  address, — ^by  the  accomplishment  of  her 
mind.  She  spoke  French,  Itahan,  German,  as 
fluently  as  her  native  tongue  ;  and  was  as  per- 
fectly at  home  in  her  replies  to  the  pedantic 
compliments  of  Berio  and  the  courtly  jargon  of 
the  Duchess  d'Ascoli,  as  when  bowing  off*  the 
provincial  over-civility  of  Sir  James  Darhng. 

But  when  the  whole  sunshine  of  that  radiant 
countenance  was  turned  upon  himself,  Helmsley 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  26? 

lost  all  power  of  discrimination  !  He  scarcely 
understood  what  words  proceeded  from  lips 
that  seemed  too  expressively  beautiful  for  the 
utterance  of  any  ordinary  sentiment. 

The  ball  commenced;  but  Lady  Adelaide 
would  not  dance.  Though  most  of  the  groups 
which  had  been  formed  for  tableaux  were 
broken  up,  Laura  and  Petrarca  seemed  destined 
to  remain  together.  Mrs.  St.  Paul  accepted 
the  offered  hand  of  her  Boccaccio  and  took  her 
place  in  a  quadrille^  amid  a  judicious  mixture  of 
Greeks  and  Turks,  Russians  and  Persians, 
quakers  and  lady  abbesses;  but  Lady  Adelaide 
having  dechned  to  waltz  with  Prince  Leopold 
of  Syracuse  on  the  plea  of  indisposition,  ap- 
peared to  have  appropriated  to  herself  the 
attendance  of  the  far  from  reluctant  Helmsley. 

As  they  were  sitting  together,  however,  at  one 
extremity  of  the  gallery,  now  comparatively  de- 
serted for  the  gay  spectacle  of  the  ball-room,  she 

n2 


268     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

suddenly  rose,  observing,  ^^  I  saw  my  father 
pass  into  the  tribune,  where  I  rather  think 
there  are  card- tables.  Perhaps  you  will  take 
me  to  him  that  I  may  release  you  from  capti- 
vity. The  ball-room  is  too  oppressive  for  me ; 
and  you  must  not  lose  the  gayest  part  of  the 
spectacle/^ 

"  If  you  grudge  me  the  perfect  happiness  I 
am  enjoying  here,^^  rephed  Sir  William,  "  I 
will  certainly  go  in  search  of  Lord  Colebrooke. 
But  I  have  as  little  inchnation  as  yourself  to 
encounter  the  atmosphere  of  the  ball-room.^^ 

^^  At  least,  let  us  move  from  hence,^^  said 
Madonna  Laura,  in  a  lower  voice,  glancing 
towards  one  end  of  the  gallery,  where  sat 
the  Grosvenor  Square  countess,  conversing 
as  Flora  Mc  Ivor  with  a  Baron  of  Bradwar- 
dine  in  whom  Sir  William  detected  his  friend 
Sir  Raymond  Horton, — "  that  man  is  my  evil 
genius !" 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE   WORLD.  269 

"  I  am  sorry  to  hear  such  an  accusation 
against  one  of  my  earliest  acquaintances.  Do 
notj  however,  let  him  drive  us  away  from  this 
cool,  quiet  retreat.  I  will  answer  for  preserving 
you  to-night  from  the  influence  of  his  spells  V* 
continued  Helmsley,  with  a  smile. 

'^  You  cannot  answer  for  securing  me  against 
the  scandals  and  misinterpretations  which 
Lady  Wycombe  will  not  only  create  out  of  our 
being  seen  here  together,  but  despatch  to  Lon- 
don, by  to-morrow^s  courier,  for  the  annotations 
of  all  the  dowagers  in  May  Fair !" 

"  What  could  the  most  scandal-loving  synod 
of  old  women  whose  breath  outvenoms  all  the 
worms  of  Nile,  find  to  comment  upon,  in  the 
fact  that  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere  condescended 
to  accept  for  an  hour  or  two,  at  a  crowded  fete, 
the  protection  of  her  future  brother-in-law  V' 
said  Helmsley,  with  awakened  spirit. 

"  Brother-in-law  ?"  reiterated  Lady  Adelaide, 


270     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

turning  towards  him   a   countenance  wearing 
the  expression  of  unequivocal  amazement. 

"  Pardon  me  ?'  said  Helmsley,  conscious  of 
the  indiscretion  of  his  frankness.  "  I  am  per- 
haps too  presumptuous  in  anticipating  for 
Gerald  a  happiness  to  which  he  may  not  yet 
have  found  courage  to  aspire.  Overlook  my 
offence ;  and  conclude  that  I  am  only  judging 
the  case  as  it  will  be  judged  by  at  least  one 
half  the  persons  assembled  here  to-night. '^ 

"  Do  you  mean  me  to  understand/*  said 
Lady  Adelaide,  evidently  struggling  with  some 
secret  emotion,  "  that  I  am  generally  supposed 
to  be  engaged  to  Mr.  Wroughton  ?" 

"  Not  engaged/'  rephed  Sir  William,  still 
more  and  more  embarrassed. 

"  Likely,  then,  to  be  engaged, — desirous  to 
be  engaged, — attached, — what  term  can  I  use 
to  persuade  you  to  be  frank  with  me  \"  cried 
Lady  Adelaide,  with  genuine  earnestness. 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  2jl 

"  You  have  a  right  to  command  my  frank- 
ness after  my  unpardonable  indiscretion/^  said 
Helmsley.  "  You  have  a  right  to  know  that 
the  world  here  imagines  Gerald  Wroughton  to 
be  deeply  attached  to  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere ; 
and  that  at  no  distant  period^  it  will  lie  at  her 
disposal  to  render  him  the  happiest  or  most 
miserable  of  men," 

Lady  Adelaide  started,  and  was  for  a  moment 
silent.  "  I  know  not  why  I  should  feel  sur- 
prised or  displeased  at  all  this/^  she  observed 
at  length.  ^'  I  have  lived  long  enough  to  be 
aware  that  there  is  no  limit  to  the  absurd  sur- 
mises of  society,  particularly  in  such  an  uninci- 
dental  place  as  Naples,  where  there  is  so  little 
scandal  to  engross  the  interest  of  my  country- 
people.'* 

^*  Is  there  any  thing  particularly  absurd,'' 
said  Sir  William,  almost  seriously,  "  in  attri- 
buting to  a  beautiful  woman  supreme  influence 


272  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE   WORLD. 

over  the  feelings  of  a  disengaged  man^ — youngs 
free^ — handsome^ — rich^ — in  a  position  to  look 
upon  marriage  as  the  crowning  happiness  of  his 
prosperous  destiny  ?" 

^^  I  spoke  not  with  reference  to  your  brother- 
in-law,  I  spoke  selfishly.  It  is^  I  think^  absurd 
to  imagine  that  a  woman  who  has  suffered  so 
bitterly  as  I  have  done  from  the  consequences 
of  an  ill-advised  marriage,  would,  in  the  more 
matured  season  of  her  experience,  be  tempted 
into  a  union  with  a  man  several  years  her 
junior  in  age, — in  character  a  hundred  !^' 

It  was  now  Sir  William  Helmsley's  turn  to 
start.  "  Am  I  to  understand,  then,  that  you 
would  reject  a  proposal  of  marriage  from  Gerald 
Wroughton  ?" — 

"  I  know  not  by  what  right  you  interrogate 
me  on  so  delicate  a  point,^^  replied  Lady 
Adelaide,  restored  to  composure  and  attempting 
to  resume  her  smiles. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  273 

"  May  I  at  least  be  permitted  to  inquire/' 
persisted  Sir  William,  ^^  whether,  throughout 
your  intimacy  with  this  young  man, — this  boy, 
— (for  he  was  a  boy  when  first  he  became  sub- 
mitted to  your  influence,) —  you  never  surmised, 
you  never  felt  the  extent  of  your  power  over 
his  feelings  ?'' — 

^^  If  the  extent  be  such  as  you  would  infer, — 
never !  I  was  aware  that  he  preferred  the  society 
of  our  house  to  that  of  any  other  in  Naples, — 
which  (to  render  my  father  justice)  is  not  very 
wonderful/' 

^^  You  imagined  that  he  was  attracted  to  the 
Palazzo  Balbi,  by  the  charm  of  Lord  Cole- 
brooke's  conversation }" — 

^^  In  some  measure,  but  not  solely.  I  con- 
cluded I  had  my  share  in  the  attraction.  I 
have  known  Mr.  Wroughton  intimately  for 
years.  When  first  he  was  presented  to  us  by 
our  valued  friend  Dr.  Moorsom,  he  was,  as  you 

n3 


274     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

just  now  remarked,  a  mere  boy,  —  a  sickly, 
dying  boy.     How  could  we  do  otherwise  than 
interest  ourselves  in  the  fate  of  a  young  coun- 
tryman, exiled  from  home,  and  under  circum- 
stances so   truly   dispiriting? — I  was   at  that 
period  scarcely  recovered  from  the  anguish,  so 
torturing  to  a  woman  of  decent  feeling,  of  being 
exposed  to  the  coarse  raillery  of  a  court  of  law, 
— the  coarse  comments  of  the  public  journals. 
I  was  then  less  cheerful,  and  our  house  less 
brilliant  than  now ;  and  to  its  domestic  fireside 
Gerald  was  welcomed,  by  my  father  as  a  son, — 
by  myself  as  a  brother. — He  quitted  Naples. 
We  heard  no  more  of  him.    We  expected  to 
hear  no  more  of  him.    We  knew  that  he  was 
by  no    means    our    far-distant    neighbour    in 
Northamptonshire ;  yet  intimate  as  had  been 
our  friendship  in  Italy,  he  deigned  not  even  to 
make  the  common  inquiries  of  courtesy  after 
my  father.     How  could  I  suppose  that  one  so 


THE   WOMAN   OF   THE   WORLD.  275 

cold  and  graceless,  was  cherishing  towards  me 
the  tenderness  of  a  lover  V — 

Lady  Adelaide  paused  for  a  reply ;  but  Helms- 
ley  had  not  presence  of  mind  to  utter  a  syl- 
lable. 

**  At  length,  casual  report  acquainted  us,'' 
continued  the  lovely  Laura,  "  of  the  family 
distresses  which,  naturally  enough,  were  estrang- 
ing the  mind  of  Gerald  Wroughton  from  his 
friends.  We  grieved  for  him,  for  through  him 
we  had  learned  to  feel  famihar  with  the  un- 
known members  of  his  family ;  to  respect  his 
brother  and  guardian, — to  admire  and  love  that 
guardian^s  angelic  wife.  We  pitied,  therefore, 
and  forgave  our  truant  friend." 

"  You  were  indeed  indulgently  forgiving  I" 
exclaimed  Sir  William ;  "  since,  on  his  arrival 
here  this  winter,  you  received  him  again  and 
with  the  same  familiar  confidence  into  your 
circle  \" 


^7^  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

"  Sufficient  evidence^  were  proof  wanting, 
that  he  was  regarded  as  a  mere  acquaintance 
both  by  my  father  and  myself! — It  is  easy  to 
forgive  the  fault  of  an  indifferent  person ;  while 
the  ingratitude  of  those  we  love  is  an  unpardon- 
able offence  \" 

"  Am  I  plainly  to  conclude,  then/^ — cried 
Helmsley,  accelerating  his  explanations  on 
perceiving  that,  a  supper-room  having  been 
opened  at  the  lower  extremity  of  the  gallery, 
the  crowd  of  dancers  was  hurr}nng  forward  so 
as  to  render  conversation  or  confidence  impos- 
sible ; — "  am  I  to  conclude  that  my  brother  is 
without  hope  of — '^ 

^^  Lady  Adelaide — Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere — 
my  dear  Lady  Adelaide  ! — I  have  been  looking 
for  you  in  aU  directions  l^' — panted  Mrs.  Long- 
man-Tompkinson.  "  There's  the  Prince  of 
Capua  waiting  to  take  me  in  to  supper,  and 
I  can't  lay  my  hand  on  Lady  Wycombe  (who, 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  277 

I  suppose^  is  somewhere  or  other  with  Lord 
Portumna)  to  take  the  arm  of  Prince  Leopold. 

So  do  pray  be  so  obliging  as Stay ! — he^s 

here  close  behind  me  ?' — And  before  the  Long- 

man-Tompkinson  could  complete  her  harangue, 
or  Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere  refuse  or  consent, 
the  embroidered  arm  of  Neapolitan  royalty 
was  extended  towards  her ;  she  was  compelled 
to  follow,  led  by  the  Prince  of  Syracuse,  the 
nodding  diamond  sprays  of  her  elated  hostess ; 
and  Petrarca  was  left  to  follow,  with  the  un- 
poetical  throng,  or  go  poetically  supperless  to 
bed!— 


278  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


One  prospect  lost,  another  still  we  gain  ; 
And  not  a  vanity  is  given  in  vain. 

Pope. 


The  triumph  reflected  upon  Sir  William 
while  escorting  through  the  enthusiastic  throng 
the  queen  of  the  night,  had  alas !  produced  an 
intoxicating  effect  on  his  usually  sober  senses. 
It  would  have  been  indeed  difficult  to  remain 
insensible  to  the  homage  lavished  from  all  sides 
on  the  lovely  Laura ! — Wherever  they  turned, 
exclamations  in  all  languages  greeted  his  ear,  of 
"  How    lovely !"— ''  How    elegant !"— «  How 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  279 

enchanting  \" — "  What  a  handsome  couple  I" 
"  They  seem  made  for  each  other  !'* — 

In  the  illusion  of  the  moment,  Sir  William 
was  almost  tempted  to  echo  this  flattering  sen- 
timent ;  which,  when  overheard  by  Lady  Ade- 
laide, brought  so  delicate  a  blush  into  her  beau- 
teous face.  He  felt  that  they  were  made  for 
each  other ;  and  could  scarcely  restrain  himself 
from  pressing  the  graceful  hand  that  rested  in 
alabaster  whiteness  on  his  own. 

But  now  that  the  glory  of  his  momentary 
triumph  was  over, — now  that  he  was  forced  to 
resign  his  place  of  honour  to  the  heavy-headed 
Prince  Leopold, — Helmsley  was  induced,  by  the 
sudden  sense  of  dulness  and  bereavement  that 
overpowered  him,  to  a  still  higher  sense  of  the 
honours  he  had  enjoyed.  What  gratification, 
then,  must  await  the  vanity  of  the  man  to 
whom  such  triumphs  would  become  of  hourly 
recurrence ;  the  man  privileged  to  feel,  when 


280     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

thousands  of  admiring  eyes  were  fixed  upon 
that  lovely  being, — "  She  is  mine — my  own — 
my  plighted  love — my  wedded  wife  !'^ 

Thwarted  and  irritable,  he  had  not  patience 
to  bestow  his  civilities  upon  any  other  woman 
present ;  but,  separating  himself  from  the  mot- 
ley throng  pressing  onwards  to  the  banquet, 
wandered  in  an  opposite  direction  through  the 
farms  they  had  deserted.  When,  lo !  peepinginto 
the  ball-room  from  the  furthest  antechamber,  in 
curious  contrast  with  the  snowy  heads  of  Mrs. 
Longman-Tompkinson's  over-powdered  foot- 
men, he  discerned  the  black  Brutus  and  anxious 
countenance  of  Ludovico,  his  courier.  At  the 
same  moment,  his  own  person  attracted  the 
notice  of  the  servant;  who,  in  spite  of  the 
efforts  of  the  scarlet-plush  brigade  to  restrain 
his  intrusion,  advanced  boldly  towards  his  mas- 
ter, with  a  letter  in  his  hand ; — a  letter  from 
England, — a  letter   hy  express, — a  letter  from 


THE    WOMAN    OP   THE   WORLD.  281 

the  confidential  secretary  of  the  dying  Lord 
Shropshire ! 

"Is  the  carriage  here }" — demanded  the  con- 
science-stricken baronet  after  receiving  this 
explanation. 

"  Si,  eccelenza ! — at  the  door  !"  And  without 
a  moment^s  pause  Sir  William  hurried  home. 
The  courier  was  waiting  to  see  him ;  but  the 
man^s  verbal  communication  was  superfluous. 
"  Lord  Shropshire,  though  most  unlikely  to  be 
still  alive,  had  requested  the  immediate  presence 
of  his  nephew — of  his  heir  J  ^ 

Not  an  hour  was  to  be  lost.  The  inteUigent 
Ludovico  undertook  every  preparation  for  im- 
mediate departure.  It  would  only  be  necessary 
to  wait  for  the  opening  of  the  banking-house 
with  which  Sir  WiUiam^s  letter  of  credit  was 
deposited.  His  diplomatic  passport  required  a 
single  visa  from  the  police ;  by  nine  o^clock  the 
following  morning,  he  might  be  on  the  road. 

For  a  moment,  Sir  William  hesitated  whether 


282    THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

to  return  to  the  ball,  to  communicate  to  Gerald 
the  necessity  for  his  precipitate  departure  and 
take  leave  of  a  few  chosen  friends.  But  he  felt 
that,  under  all  the  circumstances,  he  ought  not 
to  be  seen  at  the  fete ;  or  rather,  he  felt  con- 
scious that  his  motives  for  the  project  were  not 
altogether  such  as  he  was  avowing  to  himself. 
In  the  course  of  an  hour  or  two,  Gerald  must 
return  home ;  when  their  adieus  and  mutual 
commissions  would  be  easily  exchanged. 

It  did  not,  of  course,  enter  into  the  conjec- 
tures of  Helmsley,  that  Wroughton  would  pro- 
pose to  bear  him  company.  So  hurried  a 
journey  as  he  should  be  forced  to  make,  could 
not  be  otherwise  than  unnecessarily  injurious 
to  the  delicate  young  man ;  nor  was  it  likely 
that  Gerald  would  be  desirous  to  tear  himself 
from  the  spot  where  the  object  of  his  affections 
had  still  a  month  to  sojourn. 

But  there  lay  the  real  source  of  perplexity  to 


THE   WOMAN    OF   THE   WORLD.  283 

Sir  William  Helmsley  ! — Was  he  to  leave  poor 
Gerald  cherishing  expectations,  the  loss  of  which 
must  prove  so  agonizing,  without  a  word  of 
warning — a  word  of  admonition  ? — Yet,  to  what 
extent  was  he  privileged  in  repeating  the  com- 
munications,  or  rather  betraying  the  confidence, 
of  Lady  Adelaide  ? — How  could  he,  in  all  the 
flurry  of  departure,  hazard  the  sudden  discussion 
of  so  delicate  a  subject  ? — 

The  effort  was  impossible !  He  felt  that  he 
had  not  courage  to  startle  his  brother,  returning 
in  all  the  gladsomeness  of  youthful  gaiety  from  a 
ball-room,  first  with  the  tidings  of  his  own  abrupt 
departure,  and  secondly  with  the  unprefaced 
declaration  that  he  must  give  up  aU  hope  of 
Lady  Adelaide  de  Vere !  He  would  write.  He 
would  convey  a  slight  hint  in  his  first  letter, 
and,  gradually  unfolding  the  truth,  secure  poor 
Gerald  from  the  mortification  of  rejection. 

Helmsley  was  fully  confirmed  in  this  deter- 


284  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

-r 

mination,  when  at  length  Mr.  Wroughton 
made  his  appearance.  Elated  by  the  excite- 
ment of  the  brilhant  scene  he  had  quitted, 
Gerald  was  in  the  highest  spirits.  His  eyes 
sparkled,  his  cheeks  were  flushed  with  animation. 
He  was  evidently  thrilling  under  the  inspiration 
of  love,  and  hope,  and  Laura  ! 

"  Well,  my  dear  fellow  V' — cried  he,  after 
listening  to  the  incoherent  explanations  afforded 
by  Sir  William,  ^^  I  must  not  grumble  over  an 
event  which  by  this  time  has  probably  made 
you  Lord  Monthermer,  with  forty  or  fifty  thou- 
sand a  year ;  for  though  my  own  loss  on  the 
occasion  is  great,  7/our  gain  is  clearly  greater. 
I  will  not  even  affect  the  pitiful  hypocrisy  of 
offering  to  bear  you  company ;  for  were  you  to 
accept  it,  you  would  have  little  profit  in  a  tra- 
velHng  companion  whose  heart  and  soul  would 
be  at  Naples,  and  his  body  in  your  post-chaise.^^ 

Helmsley  was  silent. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  285 

^^  I  know  I  can  trust  Ludovico  to  cater  for 
you  with  comfort  on  your  route ;  and  to  say  the 
truths  I  shall  neither  replace  him  nor  the  car- 
riage. You,  my  dear  Helmsley,  will  not  pro- 
nounce me  to  be  a  coxcomb,  if  I  own  that  I 
have  the  hope — the  all  but  certainty — a  cer- 
tainty more  than  ever  confirmed  this  very  even- 
ing,— that  I  shall  return  to  England  an  accepted 
lover;  and  when  Lord  Colebrooke  finds  me 
left  alone  here,  he  will  probably  offer  me  a  place 
in  his  carriage.^^ 

^^  A  certainty  more  than  ever  confirmed  this 
very  evening }"  —  involuntarily  repeated  Sir 
William. 

"  Ay — more  than  ever ! — Do  not  ask  me  for 
particulars — do  not  compel  me  to  confession. 
I  fancy  you  give  me  credit  for  not  being  wholly 
an  ass ;  and  you  may  trust  to  my  discrimination 
that  I  am  safe, — approved  by  the  father  and 
beloved  by ' 


i) 


286  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

Sir  William  started  from  his  seat.  This  was 
too  much  for  him.  He  felt  that  he  was  on  the 
point  of  betraying  himself.  But  in  remaining 
silent^  was  he  not  betraying  his  brother-in-law  ? 

"  All,  therefore,  I  have  to  entreat  of  you," 
continued  Wroughton,  attributing  Helmsley's 
emotion  to  dissatisfaction  at  the  prospect  of  the 
match, — ^'  is,  that  you  will  try  for  my  sake  to 
overcome  yo\ir  own  prejudices  and  those  of 
poor  dear  Emma ;  and  prepare  to  welcome  my 
sweet  wife  into  the  family  as  a  sister  and  friend. 
I  am  fully  aware  of  your  antipathy ;  but  I  am 
also  aware  you  have  too  much  kindness  of 
heart  to  persist  in  harshness  and  injustice  to- 
wards an  innocent  person." 

It  was  fortunate  for  Helmsley  that  Ludovico 
at  that  moment  entered  the  room  with  a  bag  of 
gold,  the  exchange  for  one  of  Hammerslej^s 
notes  with  which  he  had  been  intrusted  by  Sir 
William.     Details  of  business  were  now  to  be 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD,  28? 

attended  to.  The  hour  of  departure  was  at 
hand ;  and  the  doubts  which  a  moment  before 
had  glanced  into  the  mind  of  the  new  Lord 
Monthermer — "  Is  it  myself,  or  is  it  Gerald 
she  has  been  deceiving?" — was  set  aside  by 
inquiries  after  cloaks  and  roadbooks,  sandwich- 
boxes  and  air-pillows  ! 

When  morning  dawned,  Gerald  retired  to 
rest  to  dream  of  Laura  de  Sades,  or  Lady  Ade- 
laide Wroughton ;  and  Lord  Monthermer  had 
reached  Santa  Agata,  on  his  way  to  the  enjoy- 
ments of  Bridgnorth  Castle  and  the  revenues 
of  an  Italian  sovereign. 


288  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


I  have  upon  a  rich  and  pleasant  hill, 
Feigned  Fortune  to  be  thron'd.    Amongst  the  crowd, 
Whose  eyes  are  on  the  sovereign  lady  fix'd. 
One  do  I  personate,  of  Lord  Timon's  frame. 
Whom  fortune  with  her  ivory  hand  wafts  to  her. 

Shakspeare. 

Had  Lord  Monthermer^  in  his  hurried  jour- 
ney homewards,  been  morally  the  same  indi- 
vidual who,  five  months  before,  as  Sir  William 
Helmsley,  pursued  the  same  road  in  an  opposite 
direction,  the  self-communing,  ensured  by  a 
fortnight  spent  in  a  solitary  travelling-carriage, 
might  have  been  productive  of  advantageous 


THE    WOMAN    OF   THE    WORLD.  289 

results.  But  the  man  was  as  much  altered  as 
his  name  and  station ;  and  the  conflict  of  those 
emotions  to  which  he  had  unwittingly  afforded 
shelter  in  his  bosom^  was  rather  stimulated 
than  soothed  by  the  undisturbed  train  of  his 
reflections. 

Sometimes,  starting  from  his  reveries,  he 
would  upbraid  himself  for  having  quitted 
Naples  so  abruptly,  without  a  definite  explana- 
tion with  Gerald  and  Lady  Adelaide.  What 
was  the  motive  of  his  haste  in  flying  to  England  ? 
To  bury  the  dead.  For  it  was  scarcely  within 
the  scope  of  possibility  that  Lord  Shropshire 
should  still  survive;  and  what  claim  had  the 
senseless  remains  of  his  kinsman  upon  his 
assiduities,  compared  with  the  interests  of  his 
living,  breathing,  excellent,  afl*ectionate  brother  ? 
He  almost  determined,  on  reaching  Milan,  when 
a  letter  was  delivered  to  him  addressed  to  "  The 
Lord  Monthermer^'   formally    announcing  the 

o 


290  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

decease  of  his  uncle^  to  retrace  his  steps  towards 
Naples.  But  what  interpretation  would  be 
placed  by  the  world  on  such  manifest  inconsis- 
tency ? — What  apology  could  he  oifer  to  society 
for  leaving  the  obsequies  of  the  deceased  earl 
unsolemnized,  and  the  interests  of  his  own  son 
unguarded  ? — No !  —  he  must  proceed !  —  With 
feverish  lips  he  murmured  aloud  an  ejaculation 
that  it  was  now  too  late  for  interference  ;  that 
time  and  fate  must  develop  his  own  destinies 
and  those  of  the  two  human  beings  who,  saving 
his  children,  were  dearest  to  him  on  earth. 

It  was  scarcely  possible  for  a  man  acceding 
to  opulence  and  distinction  from  comparative 
obscurity,  to  regard  with  more  complete  indif- 
ference his  auspicious  change  of  fortunes.  He 
no  longer  attempted  to  disguise  from  himself, 
that  the  humblest  position  in  life  cheered  by 
the  tenderness  and  brightened  by  the  beauty  of 
such  a  being  as  Adelaide  de  Vere,  would  be 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  291 

more  precious  to  him  than  the  barren  splen- 
dours with  which  he  was  henceforth  to  be 
environed.  He  felt  that,  though  tidings  of 
Gerald^s  rejection  would  imbitter  his  pros- 
perity with  feelings  of  pity  and  remorse,  the 
realization  of  Gerald^s  presumptuous  hopes, 
would  render  life  a  burden  to  himself. 

The  weather  was  mild  and  spring-hke ;  the 
hill-sides   were  already  clothed  with   verdure, 
and  the  meads  variegated  with  flowers.      All 
was  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  his  dawn- 
ing prospects.      Yet   scarcely  for   a   moment 
were   the   reflections   of  the   bewildered   man 
directed  towards  either  the  pleasures  or  duties 
that  awaited  him.      He  thought  not  of  the 
princely  halls  and  parks  and  forests  of  Bridg- 
north,— the  home  of  his  mother^s  youth, — the 
home  of  his  son^s  maturity.     His  fancy  wan- 
dered only  to  the  purple  coasts  he  was  aban- 
doning,— to  the  budding  gardens  of  Villa  Reale, 


292  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

— to  the  shrubby  steeps  of  Pozzuoli, — to  the 
fragrant  atmosphere  of  enervate  and  enervating 
Italy  !— 

Arrived  at  Dovor,  and  persecuted  into  a  re- 
cognition of  his  newly-acquired  importance  by 
the  obsequiousness  of  mine  host  of  the  Ship, 
the  London  newspapers  which  were  placed  in 
his  hands  during  a  hurried  breakfast,  informed 
him  that  "  The  body  of  the  late  Earl  of  Shrop- 
shire was  lying  in  state  in  his  mansion  in 
Grosvenor  Square,  till  the  arrival  of  his  lord- 
ship's nephew  and  heir  Lord  Monthenner,  who 
was  hourly  expected  in  town  from  the  con- 
tinent.'^ 

Another  journal  acquainted  him  that  he  was 
in  his  twenty-ninth  year ;  a  young  man  of  pre- 
possessing appearance  and  high  accomplish- 
ments ;  who  had  distinguished  himself  by  the 
attainment  of  honours  at  Oxford,  and  was  likely 
to  acquire  distinction  in  the  upper  house. 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  293 

A  third  (and  these  tidings  were,  perhaps,  the 
most  welcome  of  the  three)  stated  that  "  prepa- 
rations were  making  at  his  mansion  in  Grosve- 
nor  Square,  for  the  arrival  of  Lord  Monthermer, 
who  was  to  reach  town  on  Tuesday  next/^ 

For  once,  indeed,  the  papers  spoke  truth. 
On  that  very  Tuesday  evening,  four  smoking 
posters  drew  up  before  the  lordly  mansion 
in  Grosvenor  Square  whose  doors  had  never 
before  unclosed  to  afford  him  a  cordial  welcome; 
and  whose  half-closed  shutters  now  announced 
to  the  world,  that  the  dust  of  the  Earl,  its  late 
owner,  lay  coffined  within,  in  all  the  pride  and 
pomp  of  crimson  velvet  and  circumstance  of 
gilt  cherubim  and  nails. 

On  the  following  morning,  a  gorgeous  achieve- 
ment appended  to  the  fagade  of  the  house, 
proclaimed  that  even  the  dust  was  departed. 
The  funeral  was  on  its  slow  way  into  North- 
amptonshire;   Lord  Monthermer  having  pre- 

o  2 


294  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

ceded  it,  to  be  in  waiting  at  Bridgnorth  Castle 
for  the  mournful  procession. 

After  the  ruggedness  of  continental  land- 
scape, how  rich  now  appeared  to  his  eyes  the 
green  and  timber-fenced  pastures  of  England ! 
how  Tempe-hke  those  noble  parks,  set  aside 
for  centuries  from  the  common  earth,  to  recreate 
the  mighty  ones  of  mankind  with  their  velvet 
sward,  their  groves,  their  glens,  their  glorious 
alternation  of  hill  and  valley  1 — Lord  Mon- 
thermer  entered  the  magnificent  domain  of 
Bridgnorth  Castle,  as  the  evening  sun  was 
streaming  in  golden  lustre  over  its  hanging 
woods,  its  abounding  river  and  foaming  cas- 
cades ;  and  the  nobleness  of  the  scenery,  and  the 
lofty  mansion  by  which  it  was  dominated,  seemed 
to  strike  him  with  all  the  force  of  novelty. 

But  no  feeling  of  personal  elation  mingled 
with  his  delight.  Expectation  of  future  in- 
heritance had  been  so  remote  from  his  mind. 


THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD.     295 

and  the  untimely  death  of  his  young  cousin 
was  still  so  recent,  that  no  time  had  been 
afforded  for  surmises  respecting  the  ultimate 
disposal  of  the  property.  Up  to  the  moment 
of  receiving  the  letter  from  his  man  of  business, 
he  felt  persuaded  that  the  earl  would  marry 
again;  and  events  had  since  succeeded  each 
other  so  rapidly,  and  fallen  upon  a  mind  so 
thoroughly  pre-engrossed,  that  all  appeared  a 
dream.  He  approached  Bridgnorth  Castle  as 
if  still  coming  to  pay  his  cold  respects  to  the 
kinsman,  who  was  no  longer  there  to  welcome 
him  or  to  repulse. 

It  was  well  for  the  new  lord  that  a  sense  of 
fatigue  after  his  recent  exertions,  superseded 
for  the  time  every  other  sensation;  and  that 
he  was  able  to  sleep  away  his  first  twelve  hours 
of  desolate  autocracy.  In  spite  of  the  throng 
of  servants  which  poured  forth  to  offer  their 
compliments  of  condolence  and  allegiance,  no- 


296     THE  WOMAN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

thing  could  exceed  the  dreariness  of  the  vast 
mansion;  of  which,  till  Lord  Shropshire  was 
deposited  in  the  grave.  Lord  Monthermer  could 
not  feel  himself  altogether  lord  and  master. 
It  seemed  to  his  disordered  faculties  (still 
unrefreshed  by  repose),  as  if  the  blaze  of  light 
and  display  of  plate,  costly  viands,  and  gene- 
rous wines,  were  prepared  as  a  feast  of  mock- 
to  the  absent  one,  not  yet  united  to  the 
dead,  though  so  fearfully  c?25-united  from  the 
living. 

The  following  morning,  however,  some  relief 
was  afforded  to  the  loneliness  of  the  dispirited 
though  not  afflicted  heir,  by  a  visit  from  the 
rector  of  Bridgnorth  (the  chaplain  of  the  late 
earl),  and  the  arrival  from  town  of  the  family 
solicitor  and  auditor  of  the  estates.  The  will 
of  the  deceased  was  now  formally  read ;  be- 
queathing all  and  every  thing  to  the  heir-at-law, 
with  the  exception  of  a  legacy  of  a  thousand 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  297 

pounds  to  his  friend  Lord  Colebrooke,  and  a 
few  bequests  to  old  servants  and  dependants. 
The  only  person  who  listened  with  a  careless 
ear  to  the  enumeration  of  family  property, 
inserted  probably  by  the  manufacturers  and 
reciters  of  the  will  for  the  purpose  of  multiply- 
ing its  skins  of  parchment,  was  Lord  Mon- 
thermer ;  who  was  roused  from  the  reverie  into 
which  he  had  fallen  during  the  recapitulation 
by  a  hearty  shake  of  the  hand  from  the  gra- 
tulating  rector,  who  had  not  yet  learned  to 
approach  with  the  obsequiousness  due  to  a 
right  honourable  patron,  the  young  man  he 
had  so  often  heard  reviled  by  the  late  earl  as 
"  that  ass,  my  nephew  William  Helmsley.^^ 

Lord  Monthermer  had  sufficient  command 
over  himself  to  oifer  his  thanks  to  the  three 
grave  elders  who  expressed  such  disinterested 
satisfaction  in  his  good  fortune ;  and  to  invite 
them  to  assist  in  doing  to  each  other  the  hor 


298  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

nours  of  a  house  in  which  at  present  he  still  felt 
himself  an  alien. 

There  was  nothing  very  appalling  in  the 
prospect  of  the  duties  of  life  he  was  called  upon 
to  discharge ;  for  his  three  guests  were  unani- 
mous in  asserting  over  their  third  bottle  of 
claret,  that  the  loss  of  the  late  lamented  earl 
would  be  severely  felt  in  the  parish,  the  county, 
and  the  country.  Dr.  Drumstrum  humbly  sug- 
gested that,  in  consequence  of  Lord  Monther- 
mer^s  absence  from  England,  he  had  ventured 
to  anticipate  his  wishes  by  ordering  decent 
mourning  for  the  children  of  the  two  schools 
founded  by  his  late  generous  patron,  to  appear 
at  the  funeral  of  their  benefactor,  as  well  as  for 
the  elderly  women  and  infirm  men,  pensioners 
of  the  Bridgnorth  almshouses.  Mr.  Screw,  the 
auditor  stated  that  he  had  taken  upon  himself 
to  bespeak  scarves  and  hatbands  for  three  hun- 
dred tenants,  who  were   desirous  to  pay  the 


THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD.  299 

last  respect  to  the  most  liberal  of  landlords 
(after  which  a  handsome  entertainment  must 
necessarily  be  afforded  them  at  the  castle) ;  while 
Mr.  Cognovit  acquainted  his  lordship  that  his 
two  partners  and  head-clerk,  as  well  as  the 
architect,  apothecary,  wine-merchant,  and  sil- 
versmith of  the  lamented  peer,  had  signified 
their  intention  of  gracing  his  honoured  obse- 
quies on  the  morrow ;  the  distance  from  town 
being  nothing  in  comparison  with  their  zeal  in 
the  service  of  so  amiable  and  generous  an 
employer. 

After  listening  to  these  announcements,  and 
a  few  more  flourishes  of  a  similar  nature.  Lord 
Monthermer  began  to  be  almost  persuaded  that 
the  poor  and  the  people  had  really  lost  a  friend; 
and  that,  though  a  heartless  libertine  in  the 
private  relations  of  life,  his  uncle  had  been  un- 
blemished in  the  discharge  of  his  public  duties. 
The  county  papers  designated  him  "  our  late 


300  THE    WOMAN    OF    THE    WORLD. 

esteemed  and  lamented  Lord-lieutenant/^ — 
the  metropolitan  journals,  "  that  worthy  and 
distinguished  man,  the  late  Earl  of  Shrop- 
shire/^ and,  oppressed  by  the  weight  of  all 
these  testimonials  to  his  merit,  his  nephew 
began  to  feel  that  he  was  scarcely  worthy  of 
laying  at  the  feet  of  royalty  the  badge  and  rib- 
bon of  so  excellent  a  predecessor,  as  the  man 
who  had  devoted  a  third  of  his  life  to  whist, — 
which  third  was,  perhajis,  the  least  objectionable 
part  of  his  mortal  career. 


END    OF    VOL.    I. 


WHITING,  BEAUFORT  HOUSB,  STRAND. 


wmmm^ 


